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PRESENTED BY 


John Stuart Conning, D.D. 
DS 113 .B76 1925 


The wisdom of the Hebrews 





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the Lives of the Rabbis, The Wisdom 
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The 
Wisdom of the Hebrews 


Their Philosophy and Religious Teach- 
ings, their Sayings and Proverbs, as taken 
from the Talmud, the Lives of the 
Rabbis, and the writings of “fosephus, 
Spinoza, and the most Learned of the 
Hebrews of the Past 


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Introduction by 
Maurice H. Farbridge, M.A. 


Fellow in Oriental Studies 
University of Manchester 


Edited and with a Preface 
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Brian Brown 


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COPYRIGHT, 1925, BY 
BRENTANO’S, INC. 
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 


Printed in the United States of America 


PREFACE 


HE Hebrews are a branch of the great Semitic 

race to which the Babylonians, Assyrians, 

Phoenicians, Arabs and early Canaanites also 

belonged. The Babylonian branch was older in 
national life and more highly developed in certain 
aspects of civilization and culture than the Hebrew 
—which undoubtedly absorbed much of the Baby- 
lonian cultural development. The spiritual literature 
of the Hebrews later, however, reached the highest 
point in prophetic vision; their religious conceptions 
of life mounted to sublime height in poetic expres- 
sion, and their wisdom literature carried a moral 
force that has never been surpassed by any other 
people in the world. 

The usual explanation of the meaning of the word 
“Hebrew” is taken from the noun “ebher,” meaning 
the “farther bank” of a river, and that, in Hebrew 
tradition, referred to the people from the other side 
of the Euphrates or the Jordan. 

Professor Barton has this to say about the forma- 
tion of the Hebrew nation: 

“The traditions indicate that the Hebrew nation is 
composed of four groups of tribes, which are said 
to be descended from four mothers. Of these groups 
the most important are the Leah tribes and the 
Rachel tribes. Leah means ‘wild cow’ and Rachel, 
‘ewe. Opinions differ as to whether these were 
totems or economic symbols or both. The Rachel 


Vv 


vi PREFACE 


tribes may have been sheep-raisers and the Leah 
tribes cattle-raisers. There is considerable evidence, 
both archeological and biblical, to show that the 
Leah tribes entered Palestine and secured a footing 
there about 1375-1350 B.c., and that the Rachel 
tribes did not enter the country until 1200 B.c. or 
later. The evidence indicates that the Leah tribes 
entered the land from the south, the Rachel tribes 
from the east. The probability is that the Rachel 
tribes only were in Egypt, that it was they who were 
led out by Moses, and that it was with them that the 
covenant was made at the burning mountain called 
Horeb.” 

Moses, the great leader and law-giver, was un- 
doubtedly the welder of these clans into a united 
movement. This was brought about by the worship 
of one God. This one God was called “Yahweh,” 
and the spiritual principles on which it was based 
furnished the foundations for Hebrew law and re- 
ligion. Among many other ancient peoples, small 
groups had arrived at the noble religion founded 
upon the one God impulse; but the Hebrews were the 
first people whose complete impulses were founded 
upon the ideas attained by the worship of one God. 
On this point Ernest Renan says: “What Greece was 
to be as regards intellectual culture, and Rome as 
regards politics, these nomad Semites were as re- 
gards religion.” The Hebrews after forming the 
bases for a national life were first under the leader- 
ship of newly arisen heroes; their popular leaders 
are called in the Bible “Judges.” Gideon, Samuel, 
Samson and Jephthah were the foremost of these 
leaders and their names are handed down in grate- 
ful remembrance. The age of the “Judges” ended 
about 1050 B.c. 


PREFACE Vil 
THE FOUNDING OF THE HEBREW MONARCHY (about 
1050 B.c.). In the period of the “Judges” there was 
no complete unity among the tribes, and the common 
dangers to which they were exposed caused them 
finally to unite in perfect union with a strong cen- 
tral government. These unorganized groups were 
united into a kingdom under the leadership of Saul 
of the tribe of Benjamin, who had proved himself 
worthy to lead the newly formed state. 


Tue REIGN oF Davin (about 1025-993 B.c.). After 
the death of Saul, David, son of Jesse, of the tribe of 
Judah, took over the ruling of the kingdom. David 
built a great empire and successfully waged wars 
against the tribes of Moab, Ammon and Edom. David 
was not only a great warrior but was a great poet 
as well, and his noble lament, over Saul and Jona- 
than, is looked upon as one of the finest specimens 
of elegiac poetry that has come down from the 
ancient Hebrews. 


THE REIGN OF SOLOMON (about 993-953 B.c.). David 
was followed by his son Solomon, but the son did not 
possess the father’s genius for military affairs; he 
leaned towards art and learning. It was Solomon 
who erected the magnificent temple at Jerusalem, 
planned by his father. Around this temple was cen- 
tered the spiritual worship and national ideals of the 
Hebrew people. Solomon’s reign was noted for its 
magnificence and brilliancy, but in order to carry 
to completion the vast undertakings, oppressive taxes 
were laid upon the people. It was this taxation 
which caused the division of the kingdom. 


THE DIVISION OF THE KinGpom (about 953 B.c.). 
When Solomon died his son Rehoboam succeeded 
him, and the people appealed to him to lighten their 


Vili PREFACE 
taxes. He refused. The tribes of Benjamin and 
Judah rose in revolt and in a short time established 
a rival kingdom, to the north of Jerusalem, with 
Jeroboam as its first king. This new state was called 
the Kingdom of Israel. The old state over which 
Rehoboam ruled was called the Kingdom of Judah. 
Weakened by this division, the Kingdom of Israel 
(known as the ten tribes) maintained itself about 
two hundred years before it was destroyed by the 
Assyrians. The Kingdom of Judah maintained its 
independent existence for about three hundred years, 
but was finally overpowered by Babylonia. After 
this the Hebrews lost their national unity except for 
a short period under the leadership of the Maccabees. 
The Hebrews lost their national life but their 
spiritual power grew to such an extent that their 
sacred books have influenced the whole world. No 
other spiritual expressions, of any peoples, have ever 
reached the universal acceptance which theirs at- 
tained. At this point we are prompted to ask which 
is the greater, nationality or spirituality? Can a 
nationality maintain itself on purely national lines 
and last longer than a group bound by spiritual ties? 
As an answer to these questions the following 
quotation would serve: “Man becomes true if in this 
life he can apprehend God; if not, it is the greatest 
calamity for him.” If the Hebrew people hold to- 
gether upon the apprehending of God, and the ideal 
founded upon that apprehension is lived up to, the 
loss of nationality is not such a calamity, for nations 
have come and gone, but the spiritual ideal still 
holds. When we understand that the Hebrew mind 
is held together by spiritual ideals, we can easily see 
how they produced the spiritual leaders they did. In 
the Talmudic period great interpreters and spiritual 


PREFACE 1X 
teachers appeared who formulated the Talmud by 
interpreting the Hebrew traditions for the people. 

As in earlier periods the prophets appeared—those 
wise religious teachers with great authority, who 
were not afraid to oppose the King’s will in matters 
concerning the spiritual welfare of the people. So 
now came the Rabbinic teachers. 

In the middle ages great Hebrew scholars ap- 
peared who distinguished themselves among the 
scholars of the world, Moses Ibn Ezra, Ibn Gabirol, 
Solomon Bar Isaac, Abraham Ibn Ezra, Moses Mai- 
monides, and David Kimchi. The most influential of 
all these was Maimonides. He was called often the 
second Moses, as later on in the eighteenth century 
the great Hebrew thinker and scholar Moses Men- 
delssohn was called the third Moses and emanci- 
pator, for his famous work called “Jerusalem” made 
a plea for the emancipation of Judaism and the sepa- 
ration of church and state. This work had great in- 
fluence and helped the condition of the Jews in all 
Europe. Some one has said: “Morals are tested ex- 
periences by the spirit of God working in man.” If 
this is true then the Hebrews have many tested ex- 
periences, for the ideals of their teachers have always 
been to work with God. Their contribution to civil- 
ization was, turning into the ever-increasing stream 
of human consciousness the fruits of much experi- 
ence and the results of a complete concentration 
upon the spiritual philosophy surrounding the one 
God idea. 

In referring to the great importance of the Hebrew 
contribution to the religious thought of the world, 
Professor George A. Barton, in his book “The Re- 
ligions of the World,” writes: “The development of 
Israel’s religion through the influence of the prophets 


a PREFACE 


from its primitive Semitic beginnings to the forma- 
tion of Judaism, is one of the most significant chap- 
ters in the history of the human race. In other 
countries, as in Egypt, Monotheism was grasped by a 
few; in Israel alone was it made the possession of 
the people. Others conceived it as a great idea; the 
prophets linked it with human rights and common 
justice. Perhaps even here it would have failed but 
for the misfortunes of the Jewish state. These con- 
stituted a sifting process by which the devotees of the 
higher religion were separated from the reactionaries 
and formed into a community in which it was an 
axiom to men, women and children that there is but 
one God and that He demands a righteous life. In 
this achievement were the seeds of the best religious 
experiences of mankind. It was on account of this 
that the Hebrew religion became the mother of the 
three great Monotheistic religions of the world— 
Judaism, Mohammedanism, and Christianity.” 


INTRODUCTION 


The term “wisdom” has quite a wide application 
in Hebrew. It includes skill in technical work or 
warfare (Exod. 28-3, Isaiah 10-13); efficiency in ad- 
ministration (Deut. 34-9); and shrewdness in prac- 
tical affairs (Sam. II, 20-22). There is, however, a 
higher type of wisdom, the inestimable value of 
which none but God can fully realize, for “He created 
it in the beginning when He marked out the founda- 
tions of the earth” (Prov. 8-29). “It walks in the 
way of righteousness” (Prov. 8-20) and is “Benefi- 
cent, loving towards men, steadfast, sure and free 
from care” (Wisdom of Sol. 7-23). The personifica- 
tion of this type of wisdom by the Hebrews was an at- 
tempt to reconcile the transcendence of God with the 
fact of His living and active presence in the world 
of nature and in the minds of men. Prophets and 
sages thus strove to convey their sense of God’s im- 
minence in creation, while holding fast to the car- 
dinal doctrine of His transcendence. 

Mr. Brown’s anthology is a good representative 
selection of Hebrew wisdom literature. His Biblical 
selections hardly need any explanation from me; for 
is there not a vast library explaining the great Book 
of Books? Unfortunately, however, Talmudic litera- 
ture is still a sealed book to the average reader and 
its sources and wisdom therefore require some ex- 
planation. 

What is the Talmud? How can this question be 


xi 


xil INTRODUCTION 


replied to in the brief space allotted to me? “What 
is truth?” said jesting Pilate and waited not for an 
answer, expecting probably never to hear one in 
every way satisfactory. It would be saying little, and 
yet a little which involves much, to describe the 
Talmud as a pandect of all Hebrew laws, human and 
divine, civil and canon, as a document holding the 
mind and heart, the hopes and fears, the errors and 
sufferings, the goodness and greatness of Israel for 
centuries. It tells the story of generations of stormy 
life which the Jews experienced. It is a forest in 
which are heard the voices of all types of humanity 
—the scribe and the shoemaker, the teacher and the 
tailor, the student and the professor. It is in reality 
a mirror dimly reflecting the ancient attitudes of 
many diverse minds. As the work wanders from 
legend to logic, from myth to morality, from religion 
to reason, from earth to heaven, it reminds one of a 
battlefield—at one time the scene of sanguinary 
slaughter, at another of festival truce and joyful 
amnesty. 

The Talmud is truly an encyclopedia of Jewish 
science and the Hansard of nearly a thousand years 
of discussion in the Jewish schools. It contains a 
legal code, a system of ethics, poetical passages, 
prayers, a body of ritual, histories, facts of science 
and medicine and fancies of folk lore. It consists 
of disputes concerning all types of matters connected 
with Jewish religious and civil law, and decisions 
of the Rabbis in connection with these, stories, ser- 
mons, legends, scripture comments, moral truths and 
mazes of legal enactments. Although the Talmud 
developed amid conditions of peril and discourage- 
ment, amid endless disturbances of war and vio- 
lences of persecution, under the zealous eye of 


INTRODUCTION xill 


Roman informers or the cruel greed and fanatical 
malice of Persian oppressors, nevertheless the dili- 
gent student wandering through its mazes is able to 
cull flowers sparkling with the very dew of Eden. He 
will find figures in shining garments haunting its re- 
cesses, and prayers of deep devotion, sublime con- 
fidence, and noble benediction echoing in its ancient 
tongue; whilst here and there he will meet with senti- 
ments of lofty courage, of high resolve, and of far- 
seeing prudence falling from the lips of venerable 
sages. 

The Talmud is the work of many generations and 
its origin may be traced back to the restoration of 
the Jewish Commonwealth under Ezra. After the 
Jews returned from the Babylonian exile, Ezra at- 
tempted to restore the Jewish polity to its former 
state. He found his Jewish brothers possessed of 
deep religious sympathies but very ignorant of Jew- 
ish thought and neglectful of Jewish observance. As 
a means of bringing about a necessary reformation 
Ezra associated with himself some of the most emi- 
nent men of his age as an organized college or synod, 
commonly known as the “Men of the Great Assem- 
bly.” The zealous efforts of these men were directed 
to one purpose — provision for the spiritual and 
moral culture of the people. One of their maxims 
was “Be deliberate in judgment, make many dis- 
ciples and make a hedge about the law.” The Jew- 
ish mind now began to open to a sense of the glory of 
its sacred books and the profound wisdom and 
knowledge contained within their precious pages. 
Schools of learning were started where the law was 
studied and expounded, and the study of the sacred 
and legal literature was assiduously cultivated. Un- 
der the influence of the “Men of the Great Assembly” 


Xiv INTRODUCTION 


there arose an order of men known as “Sopherim” 
or “Scribes” who devoted themselves to the work 
of public instruction. The “Sopherim” became the 
editors of the sacred texts, the expositors of Holy 
Writ and the regular teachers of the Jews. 

But the thirst for knowledge once aroused could 
not easily be quenched. We hear of a multiplicity of 
sects in Israel—such as the Pharisees, the Sadducees 
and the Essenes—with different theories of the Uni- 
verse, different systems for the salvation of the soul 
and different interpretations of the law. 

The Pharisees who appeared as the successors of 
the “Scribes” were the sect to which the great mass 
of the people belonged, and were therefore the most 
important one. They were the adherents of the tra- 
ditional interpretation of the law.1. The Sadducees, 
who appeared as the opponents of the Pharisees, pro- 
fessed more liberal and philosophic tenets and were 
drawn chiefly from the wealthier section of Israel 
and those who enjoyed a liberal education; whilst the 
Essenes and other sects of a similar ascetic type had 
but a small following. 

A great difference between the Pharisees and Sad- 
ducees was based upon the acceptance or rejection 
of those laws, interpretations and commentaries 
which were not written but delivered by tradition 
from generation to generation. Circumstances neces- 
sitated a reinterpretation of many pentateuchal laws 
especially in their application to the daily lives of 
the Jewish people. Furthermore, new laws and cus- 
toms had arisen since the closing of the Canon. 
These laws and interpretations were transmitted 
orally from generation to generation by the “Scribes” 


1 For the correction of an age-long misinterpretation of Pharisaism 
and the Pharisees, see R. Travers Herford’s work on the subject. 


INTRODUCTION XV 
and the heads of the colleges. We hear of a succes- 
sion of teachers known as “Tannaim” from the time 
of Simon the Just (300 c.E.) to Rabbi Judah (175 c.£.). 
Rabbi Judah, fearing that the Roman persecution of 
the Jewish teachers might interrupt Jewish tradition, 
repealed the prohibition against writing down the 
traditional part of the Torah and proceeded to make 
a compilation of all the laws, versions and interpre- 
tations which were accepted by later generations of 
Jews in all parts of the world. This work of Rabbi 
Judah, known as the Mishna, contains the main body 
of Jewish law and embodies the authorized interpre- 
tations of the Mosaic law, the traditions, the de- 
cisions of the learned and the precedents of the 
courts or schools. The sources from which the 
Mishna is derived thus explain the nature of its rab- 
binical authority. The laws of the Mishna were 
later discussed, commented upon and explained at 
the Jewish academies of Palestine and Babylonia 
and the authentic records of these discussions are 
called Gemara. The laws, interpretations and con- 
structions of these laws, dissertations, expositions, 
comments, explanations and glosses were now col- 
lected with the Mishna and embodied in one volume 
known as the Talmud. There are two Talmudim. 
One compiled in Palestine about 400 c.£E. and contain- 
ing the learning of the Palestinian schools is popu- 
larly known as the Jerusalem Talmud, the other, 
compiled in Babylon about the fifth century, is 
known as the Babylonian Talmud. 

The two main sections running through the Tal- 
mud, and inseparably interwoven, are known as 
Halacha and Haggada. Let us consider each of these 
separately. 

Halacha deals with penal and civil law. The 


Xvi INTRODUCTION 


principle of talion referred to in the Mosaic Code had 
already totally disappeared and criminal law was 
administered by a tribunal of not less than twenty- 
three judges. Circumstantial evidence was totaily 
excluded by an admonition given to the witnesses be- 
fore the testimony was taken. No capital punishment 
could be pronounced on the strength of circumstan- 
tial evidence alone. A simple majority was sufficient 
for acquittal, but a majority of two was required to 
condemn the accused. Relatives, known enemies, 
creditors and debtors of the accused were not ac- 
cepted as witnesses. One unique piece of legislation 
was that which provided that no conviction could be 
had before it was absolutely and directly established 
that the accused was not ignorant of the law or that he 
was warned that the act he was going to commit was 
criminal. Whilst in our systems of law it is a maxim 
that ignorance of the law is no excuse, the Talmud 
did not presume that which is not true even now 
in the most civilized countries, that is, that every- 
body is acquainted with the law of the land. There 
is no doubt that the liberality and human regard 
which the Talmud shows for the accused and its pre- 
cautions against condemning the innocent cause it 
to compare favorably with many modern systems of 
law. : 

Various aspects of civil law are treated exhaus- 
tively. The status of husband and wife, master and 
servant, guardian and ward are all discussed most 
carefully. The laws dealing with inheritance, testate 
and intestate, property, real and personal, pleading 
and evidence, contracts and torts are all treated 
minutely and investigated in detail. 

The Rabbis regarded the life of man from the 
cradle to the grave as a religious service wholly de- 


INTRODUCTION XVll 


voted to God. This explains why so large a section 
of the Talmud deals with Jewish religious laws, for 
these embrace almost every action in life. The fixing 
of the dates of fasts and feasts, the arrangements of 
prayers and sacrifices and the symbolical details con- 
nected with rites and ceremonies are all the subjects 
of discussion and consideration. We read also of 
laws relating to tithes, laws concerning jubilee and 
hygienic laws for both sexes. All these laws are con- 
sidered with profound care and deep thought, show- 
ing the importance which Jewish thought attaches to 
every aspect of life. In the course of their determin- 
ing of various religious questions, the Rabbis often 
referred to their knowledge of mathematics and 
natural science. They had recourse to botany in 
treating of seeds and to zodlogy in speaking of un- 
clean animals. They needed astronomy in prepar- 
ing the calendar, physiology and medicine in treat- 
ing of various hygienic laws, and mechanics and art 
in describing the temple and its architecture. 

The Haggada loves to dwell on the persons of the 
Bible, telling us the minutest details connected with 
the lives of the patriarchs and the prophets, the 
heroes and the kings, describing their joys and sor- 
rows, their happiness and their doom. Just as the 
historian, analyzing the life of a well-known figure in 
history, supplies the gaps and explains the motives, 
so the Haggada enlarges the story of well-known 
figures contained in the Bible, and draws sublime 
lessons from the most commonplace facts. In the 
form presented to us in the Talmud the Haggada 
really represents a series of photographic slides, half 
broken, mutilated and faded; though what remains 
of them is startlingly faithful to the original. The 
Haggada is rarely, if ever, to be taken verbatim or 


Xvi INTRODUCTION 


seriously and literally any more than a droll little 
story told by Lincoln would be construed as an ex- 
position of his political tenets. It is just told inci- 
dentally in the course of the argument for the diver- 
sion of a mind overburdened with serious thought. 
Occasionally it is also the emanation of humor and 
intended for pleasantry—the small task of great 
men. | 

The relationship of the Haggada to the chief sub- 
ject of the Talmud is only incidental and its cursory 
character must always be borne in mind by the stu- 
dent of the Talmud. In a truly legal edition of the 
Talmud the Haggada would have to be eliminated 
from the text and relegated either in footnotes or 
appendices to the rear of the book. It is only the 
Halacha which can be properly called the science of 
the Talmud. The Haggada deals in allegory, myth 
and tradition. It does not confine itself within any 
limits and is in its character sometimes ethical, some- 
times mythical; but mostly exegetical. The exegesis, 
however, serves rather to illustrate the opinions of 
the debater than to interpret the Bible. Nevertheless, 
from the field of the Haggada a rich harvest can be 
gathered of great and small facts and incidents of 
the life of the ancient Hebrews and the various races 
amongst whom they lived. Their folk lore and phi- 
losophy, religion and morals are commented upon; 
their virtues and vices held up for praise or scorn. 
The archeologist and philologist find considerable 
material of profound interest scattered profusely 
throughout this vast literature, e.g., we find here a 
picture of the cosmopolitanism and luxury of the 
final days of Rome such as few classical or post-class- 
ical writings contain. 

The manner in which the Haggada suddenly in- 


INTRODUCTION x1X 


terrupts the course of the Halacha can be best illus- 
trated by the device of an old Talmudic master. He 
was engaged one hot summer afternoon explaining 
some intricate subtlety of the Bible when he suddenly 
noticed that his pupils had fallen away in drowsy 
slumber. He at once realized the best method of 
regaining their attention and suddenly burst out, 
“There once was a woman in Egypt who brought 
forth at one birth six hundred thousand men,” and 
cne can easily picture to one’s self how his audience 
must have been startled by this remarkable tale of 
the prolific Egyptian woman. “Her name,” the 
master proceeded, “was Jochabed, and she was the 
mother of Moses, who was worth as much as all those 
six hundred thousand armed men who went up from 
Egypt.” After this brief legendary digression, the 
professor proceeded with his legal intricacies and his 
students slept no more that afternoon. 

We thus see from our brief sketch of the main di- 
visions of the Talmud that it is a vast storehouse of 
Rabbinical reflections and discussions on thousands 
of topics treated of and touched on in the Bible, a 
compendium of Jewish lore, scientific and legendary, 
and a vast treasury of Jewish speculation and faith. 
It rightfully occupies one of the most distinguished 
places amongst the monuments of the past, and there 
is no code of laws of such elaborate character dis- 
cerning minuteness and extended scope, inherited 
from such a remote age to be compared with it. To 
the Jew the Talmud has been throughout the ages 
his. greatest moulding force; his thought and activi- 
ties have been continuously influenced by its teach- 
ings. It has been to him an encircling ocean encom- 
passing his whole being and penetrating every action 
of his daily life. 

Maurice H. FArBrinGeE. 


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AES Bad 
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CONTENTS 


BER ACESMS Goce sels revatetabatetotanatele tals tates A UAS OCALA eed irs aie A 
PROTROUUCTION Soe he ee cag ee a tang Mi Scke st RE 
Wispom oF Davin, KING oF ISRAEL.......... Ba ds 
WISDOM OF SOLOMON, KING OF ISRAEL............ 5 
WIspoM OF KoHELETH (Ecclesiastes)........... 14 
WISspoM OF SiRACH (Ecclesiasticus)............. 18 
DVISTIOM POR OE ticlt crit leiete teh a ond le heer Reed gears 25 
ANTRUM CHET FLED s DALSWE UD aac ca ol g tole anatase tale Pei evel vialsl's 29 
PREP EARTLOR THEO LAL MUD « fi iok rie wong Nui) ai 54 
eae -PREDECESSORS, OF) HIEMEt ee 62 
INCIDENTS IN THE LIVES OF THE RABBIS 
ROASTERS ira NiCd 1 gb ORME RA tT Ie toy A fy GS 
EPUISHIATIABE NS ABU MAH 3) Oc icb saris. sels gene. 75 
| STENT SEDANS BUG) fend 7 gre Rit RUA oe DA EOL TEA Ni AT BOR Re 78 
WVISDOM OF. PHILO. JUDAEUS.. ss cose 6 ag arn eee ae : 88 
WiisDOM. (ORME LAVIUS » J OSEPHUS. oil sts ey Siedacl ere ote 91 
MWASDOM OF RABBIOACHAL. +3 2h 308 oe ee ee 94 
WISDOM OF AADIA.GAON cee es Pen ee anche she 97 
WISDOM OF SOLOMON IBN GABIROL............... 112 
WIspDOM OF BACHYA IBN PAKUDAH.............. 128 
WIsDoM OF MAIMONIDES 
ON COURAGE, us hice ee IPE ay RE eee tes 136 
On Law...... anak ey UA OP OSD a a 142 
BES ORCS 4 eaters ea eps Gn Me a 143 
CONTROL AND CLEANLINESS............-00. Paine Lay 
ae 1 aL IT CL oh A OnE Ruse sag iy 


XXil CON TENSES 


WIsp0omM oF MAIMONIDES—continued 
(DHEMERCIFUL GHEART) oo Soe ee ee one 
(RHEYPURE HEARTS cc ee eee ies oe 
HE PURE LAPS eee 8 On es oa ac 


BOOK: OF JPIOUS POOULS ok ieee ee he ee 
By Jehuda b. Samuel 

TRE CGO MPENDIUM os eta eislcleke oes ee ne ee ee 
By Berachya . 

THE BOOK“OF: THE (GHAZARS. i occ ko eee 
By Judah ha-Levi 

THE THOLY “SHEREL i eels eta en 
By Joseph Kimchi 

THE FOUNDATION OF RELIGIOUS FEAR (Yesod 

Hayiral) iso eee eeepc es ace nae ane ae 

RHYMES ON MORAL INSTRUCTION 206). ae 
By Hai Gaon 

SCHULCHAN “ARUGH Ve ee te Belen ih, Ra oait HP Ry 
By Joseph Caro 

MEDIEVALY POETRY (pair oe eee hate lees aes an tore ae 

THE: PATH) OF THE YRIGHTEOUS. 50 ee 
By Moses Chayim Luzzatto 

THE WISDOM OF SPINOZA 


KNOWLEDGE OF GOD eh ee eee ae 


ILLUSTRATIONS 
Hebrew Sages Studying the Talmud...Frontispiece 
MOSCSUMAIMIONIGES cia ner seer e ly el Facing page 136 
PSV TCH DIN OZ arundel starcid earec ahs Facing page 200 
Moses Mendelssohn................ Facing page 239 


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The Wisdom of the Hebrews 


WISDOM OF DAVID, KING 
OF ISRAEL 


THE WEALTH OF WISDOM 


“How happy the man who finds Wisdom! And the 
man who Reflection attains! For her cargo is better 
than silver, and her produce surpasses fine gold! For 
she is more precious than pearls, and no pleasures 
are equal to hers! In her Right is extension of days, 
in her Left she has honour and wealth; her tracks 
are of pleasant ways, all her paths are the pathways 
of peace! Who owns her owns a Tree giving Life; 
who retains her possesses success! 


GET WISDOM 


Listen, sons, to a father’s instruction, and reflection 
attentively learn;—for good doctrine I utter to you, 
so never abandon my rules. For I was my father’s 
dear son, who because of my mother he loved, so he 
taught me himself, and he said: 

“Now let your heart cling to my words, regard my 
instructions and live. Get Wisdom; and get Under- 
standing, nor forget her, nor swerve from her 
speech, nor abandon; and then she will guard;— 
and love her,—and she will preserve. Let Wisdom 
be first; purchase wisdom; and Reflection with all 
you possess; exalt her,—and she will exalt you,— 


1 


2 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


and honour you, when you salute;—place a beauti- 
ful wreath on your head, and give a magnificent 
crown. Listen, son, and attend to my words, they 
will add to the years of your life. I teach you the 
pathways of Wisdom; I direct to the smoothest of 
roads, where, walking, your foot will not stumble, 
and if running you will not fall down.—Seize In- 
struction, and let her not go, keep her fast; because 
she is your life. 

“Never enter the path of the wicked;—nor advance 
by the road of the bad. Avoid it, and pass it not over, 
turn away from ascending, and shun; for they sleep 
not unless they have wronged; and sleep leaves them 
unless they betray, for their bread is the eating of 
Crime, and outrage the wine that they drink! 

“But the path of the good, morning light, advan- 
cing to shine to full day! While the road of the 
wicked is dark, and they know not the time of their 
fall! My son! now attend to my words, and bend 
down your ears to my speech. And let it not slip 
from your eyes, and guard in the depth of your heart! 
they are life to whoever may find; and health to all 
parts of his frame. Guard ever your thoughts with 
all care, for from them come the issues of life. 
Expel from yourself a false mouth, and cast from 
yourself a loose life. Let your eyes to your object 
look straight, and your glance be direct before you. 
And ponder the path for your feet, and let all your 
courses be firm. Swerve not to the right nor the left, 
—but turn off your foot from the wrong.” 


A WARNING AGAINST VICE 


“My son! to my wisdom attend, and bend down 
your ear to my thoughts; keep to reflection and 
knowledge, which they will provide for your lips. 


WISDOM OF DAVID 2 


Though a loose wanton’s lips may drop honey, and 
her mouth may be smoother than oil, her results 
are more bitter than wormwood, more sharp than 
a double-edged sword! Her steps only lead down to 
Death, her pathways conduct to the Grave. Lest 
you find out the pathway of life, her paths are un- 
traceably wound.—But listen, my children, to me, 
and turn not away from my words; from her let 
your steps turn away, and approach not the door of 
her house. Lest you give to Seducers your wealth, 
and to those without mercy your years. Lest stran- 
gers be fed by your strength, and your wealth in a 
foreigner’s home, and you groan at results to your- 
self, with your body and manhood destroyed, and 
exclaim, ‘How I hated instruction, and rejected re- 
proof from my heart! Nor would learn from the 
voice of my teacher, nor bend to instruction my ears! 
I have almost been always in sin! In the midst of 
the crowd and the court!” 


ADVICE ON BUSINESS AFFAIRS 


“My son, are you bond for a friend? Or for 
strangers have signed with your hand? Or are 
snared by the words of your mouth? Or caught by 
the words of your lips? Try this way, my son, to 
get free,—since you are in the hand of your neighbor, 
—go humble yourself to your friend, and never give 
sleep to your eyes, nor give to your eyelids a rest, 
till you leap like a deer from his net, and a bird 
from the hand that had caught.” 


THE PARABLE OF THE ANT 


“Go, Sluggard, look at the Ant, consider her ways, 
and be wise! Who has no Leader, Guardian, or King, 
yet lays up her bread in the summer, and heaps up 


4 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


in harvest her food! How long will you lie down, 
you sluggard? When will you rise from your sleep? 
A little more sleep, and a little more slumber, a little 
more folding the hand for a sleep,—so your poverty 
comes like a robber, and your want like a man witha 
shield.” 


THE INVITATION OF WISDOM 


“And then does not Wisdom invite? And Intel- 
lect utter her voice? from the top of the mounds by 
the roads,—she stands at the junction of streets. At 
the gates; at the front of the walls, when the en- 
trances open, she shouts: ‘Men! it is to you that I 
call! And to Adam’s sons utter my voice!—You 
foolish,—reflect and have sense; you stupid,—re- 
flect in your heart! Hear, for I speak with manifest 
sense; and with honesty open my lips; and my palate 
articulates truth, and my lips are abhorring the 
false. All the words of my mouth are for right, none 
in them are bent, or perverse; to intellect, they are 
all straight, and plain to the seeker of fact,—seize 
my instruction,—not money!—And knowledge be- 
fore refined gold! For Wisdom is fairer than pearls, 
and all pleasures equal not hers!” 


Wuat Wispom HAs DONE 


“Now Wisdom has built up her house, seven 
columns hewn out for herself; slain her cattle, and 
mingled her wine, and also her table has spread. She 
has sent out her maids to invite from the crowds 
on the top of the walls,—‘Who is ignorant, let him 
turn back,’ says she, and to those of faint heart, 
‘Come, enter and eat of my bread, and drink of the 
wine I prepare. Abandon your follies and live, and 
advance on the road of good sense.’ ” 


WISDOM OF KING SOLOMON 
On PRUDENCE AND ConpwuctT oF LIFE 
A good name is choicer than wealth; 
Good repute than much silver and gold. 


The rich and the poor mix together, 
For the Lord is the Maker of them all. 


The prudent sees danger and hides, 
The foolish go on and suffer. 


The Lord has provided reward for the meek, 
With riches, honour, and life. 


The sullen has a thousand traps on his road, 
But who keeps his temper is free. 


Train a child in the way he should go;— 
He will not desert it when old. 


The rich rule over the poor; 
And the borrower serves the lender. 


Who sows for Sin will misery reap, 
And the staff of his passions will break. 


The beneficent eyed will be blessed, 
For he gives his bread to the needy. 


Expel a scoffer, and quarreling goes; 
And Strife and abuse will depart. 
5 


THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 
The lover of a pure kind heart 
Has a royal friend at his lips. 


The Eyes of the Lord guard knowledge; 
And defeat the plans of the villain. 


The sluggard says, “A lion’s outside! 
I am sure to be killed in the streets!” 


The Lamp of the Lord in the spirit of man 
Explores the caves of the breast. 


Mercy and truth defend a King, 
For his throne is founded on mercy. 


Their strength is the glory of youthful men, 
But grey heads the honour of the old. 


To bind a wound protects from harm; 
And sufferings the depths of the mind. 


The hand of the Lord holds the mind of a king, 
He turns it towards whatever He wills. 


All a man’s ways are right in his eyes, 
But the Lord will weigh his intents. 


To practice right and justice 
Will please the Lord more than offerings. 


A haughty eye and a greedy heart 
Are the seeds of sin in the bad. 


The plans of the active procure gain, 
But those of the idle want. 


Who earn wealth by a lying tongue 
Hunt risk, and sudden death. 


The plunder of the bad afflicts them, 
And yet they refuse to do right! 


WISDOM OF KING SOLOMON 
The criminal’s path is rough, 
His who practises right is smooth. 


Better live lone on the top of a house 
Than with brawling wives in the parlour! 


The wicked heart desires evil ;— 
His friend never pleases his eyes! 


To punish a rogue instructs the weak,— 
And the wise who reflect gain knowledge. 


The Wicked house instructs the Good, 
For the bad are o’erthrown by their sin. 


Who stops his ear to the cry of the poor 
He will cry, and none will answer. 


A timely gift appeases rage, 
And a bribe in the pocket great wrath! 


The righteous delight to do right, 
And to blot out the doers of wrong. 


The man who quits the pathway of sense 
Leaves his home for the sake of shadows. 


The poor man who loves enjoyment, 
And wine and oil, will never be rich. 


The wicked should ransom the righteous, 


And the swindler be changed for the honest. 


Better to live in a desert land 
Than with a nagging, passionate wife. 


Stored goods and oil remain with the wise, 
But the stupid fellow will swallow. 


The follower of Goodness and Mercy 
Finds Life and Profit and Honour. 


7 


8 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


A deep pit is a loose woman’s mouth, 
Those who anger the Lord fall in it. 


Folly enwraps the heart of the young; 
The rod of correction removes it. 


Who plunders the poor to enrich himself 
Must give to the rich and be ruined. 


ON THE VALUE OF WISDOM 


Attend, and hear the words of the wise, 
And apply your heart to My teachings; 
For they comfort, if kept with you; 

So place them and fix on your lips, 

That your trust may be in the Lord, 

I have taught you now,—yes, yourself. 
Have I not written to you till now, 
Concerning Instruction and Knowledge? 
To teach you to weigh the words of truth, 
And to answer enquiries aright? 


THe THREE RULES 
I 


Rob not the weak for his weakness, 

And repulse not the poor from your gate; 
For the Lord will defend their claim, 
And strip those who strip them of life. 


II 


Consort not with a quarrelsome man; 
With a furious fellow go not; 

For fear you should copy his paths, 
And acquire a risk for your mind. 


WISDOM OF KING SOLOMON 


Ill 


Be not with those who strike hands, 

Who make themselves bondsmen for debts. 
If you have not the wherewith to pay, 
Your bed will be taken from you, 

So do not remove the old fence. 

Which your fathers had built around. 


On TEMPERANCE 


If you sit down to dine with a ruler, 
Consider well what is before you;— 
And put a knife to your throat, 

If you are a man of keen taste, 

And do not desire his dainties, 

For they are a food that deceives. 


On Too EAGER A PursuIT oF WEALTH 


Exhaust not yourself to be rich, 

Take a rest, that you may reflect. 

That wealth flies from your sight, and is not. 
For it grows;—then spreads wings for itself, 
Like an eagle, and flies to the skies. 


AGAINST DRUNKENNESS 


Who have woe? who have misery and brawls? 
Who have wounds? who have objectless strife? 
With whom are the red gleaming eyes? 

Are they not with the seekers of wine, 

Who go out to search for the best? 

Look not on the wine that is red, 

When its eye dances right in the cup; 

For it afterwards stings like a snake, 

And its bite like an adder inflames! 


9 


10 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


Loose women your eyes will regard, 

And your heart vomit out what disgusts, 
As though laid in the heart of the sea, 
And stretched on the deck of a ship. 
“Let them strike me! I suffer no pain! 
Let them beat me;—I never shall care!— 


|?? 


When I wake I will seek it again! 


THE FOLLY OF ENVYING THE Bap 


Feel no envy about wicked men, 

Nor wish for yourself to be them, 

When their heart is contriving a fraud, 

Or their lips are discussing to cheat. 

By Wisdom a house is built up, 

And is founded by means of Good Sense; 
And by knowledge its chambers are filled, 
With comforts and all that is nice. 

For the Wise can prevail over Strength; 
And the skilled man can conquer the strong, 
For with caution you must make your fight, 
And your victory by plenty of thought. 


AGAINST QUARRELS 


Go not in haste into strife, 

Reflect what may be the result, 

Should your neighbour prevail against you; 
So discuss the affair with your neighbour, 
But to another reveal not the thing, 

Lest he should report your mistake, 

And you cannot withdraw what you said. 


AGAINST MAKING MISCHIEF 


He goes to take a dog by the ears, 
Who joins in a quarrel not his. 


WISDOM OF KING SOLOMON | | 


Like a fool hurling darts, fire and death, 
Is the man who deceives his neighbour, 
Then exclaims, “I am only in sport!” 


A fire goes out without fuel, 
And without a tattler quarrels cease. 


Like charcoal, and wood to fire, 
Is a quarrelsome man starting strife. 


The words of a Whisperer, like sweets, 
Go down to the depths of the breast. 


Like silver dross in a Smeltry 

Are double lips, and wicked heart, 
Hatred lodges under his lips, 

And deception rests in his breast, 
Though his voice is pleasant, trust not; 
For his heart is full corrupt. 

Though he deceitfully hides his hate, 
In public his malice appears. 

Many dig the pit for his fall, 

And his flung stones turn on himself! 
His lying tongue hates those it wounds, 
And his flattering mouth those it ruins. 


ON THE UNCERTAINTIES OF LIFE 


Boast not of yourself for to-morrow, 
You know not. what that day may bring! 


Let a stranger praise you, not your mouth, 
Another, and not your own lips. 


A stone is heavy, and sand a load, 
But a fool’s fury more heavy than both. 


Fury is fierce, and a raging flood; 
But who can stand before jealousy? 


12 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


Better open reproof than hidden love :— 
The reproofs of a friend preserve; 
But an enemy’s kisses betray. 


The sated loathes a honeycomb, 
To the hungry bitter is sweet! 


Like a bird strayed from its nest. 
Is a man exiled from his home. 


Oil and perfumes delight the heart, 
And a good friend advising a man. 


Forsake not your friend, or your father’s friend; 
Nor enter your brother’s house 7 

In the day of your distress; 
For a friend is better near 
Than a brother who keeps afar. 


Be wise, my son, and delight my heart, 
As an answer to him who insults. 


The prudent sees danger, and hides ;— 
The reckless go on, and suffer. 


Take his cloak who is bail for a stranger; 
A pledge from a loose woman’s friend. 


He who rises at early dawn 
With shouts to give thanks to his friend, 
Will be thought to be cursing him. 


A drizzling shower on a rainy day 

And a quarrelsome wife are a pair. 
Restrain her? Restrain the north wind! 
And the scent on your hand!—If you can! 


As iron sharpens iron, 
So a man does the face of his friend. 


WISDOM OF KING SOLOMON 


Who tends the fig-tree eats its fruit; 
And who guards his master is thanked. 


As water shows a face to a face, 
So the heart of man shows to man. 


The Grave and Destruction are never filled, 
And the eyes of man are unsated. 


Silver by smelting, gold by a furnace, 
But man is proved by what he praises. 


If you pound a fool in a mortar with wheat 
His follies will not depart from him! 


13 


WISDOM OF KOHELETH (ECCLESIASTES) 


ON THE PuRSUIT OF KNOWLEDGE 


Vanity of Vanities! says the Preacher; Vanity of 
Vanities, all is vanity! What remains to a man from 
all the work that he does under the sun? A generation 
comes and a generation goes, but the earth endures 
for ever! And the Sun rises, and the Sun sets; and 
when the breeze of morn arises there he is! The 
Wind travels to the South, and revolves towards the 
North, traveling in circles; and in its revolutions 
returns to its place of origin! All rivers run to the 
Sea, but the Sea is not full. To that place from 
which the rivers came there they return in due 
course! All language is feeble;—a man cannot utter 
himself!—The sight is not satiated by seeing; and 
the ear is not filled by hearing! What has been,— 
that will be; and what has been done will be done; 
—for there is nothing new under the sun! If it is 
ever said, “See! This is new!” It has often been in 
former times that were before us. For there is no 
record of past events, and there will be none of 
future ones, for them to be remembered by those who 
are still more future. 


On AVARICE 


The love of money will never be satisfied with 
money;—nor he who loves wealth by its increase. 
14 


WISDOM OF KOHELETH 15 


That also is vanity. When wealth increases the con- 
-sumers increase.—Then what benefit to its pos- 
sessor—except to look on it with his eyes? The 
labourer’s sleep is sweet, whether he eats little or 
much; but the excess of the rich does not allow him 
to sleep. There is a distressing misery I have seen 
under the sun;—wealth kept to the injury of its pos- 
sessor—and that wealth perishing by an _ unfor- 
tunate accident;—when he has begot a son, and he 
possesses nothing! As he comes naked from his 
mother’s womb, he will turn to depart as he came, 
and he takes away nothing for all his labour to carry 
in his hand.—Yes! This also is a grievous misery 
all bear,—that as they came so they go,—and what 
continues is vexation of spirit. He also eats all his 
days in darkness, and much anxiety, sickness, and 
vexation.—Therefore, what I myself have concluded 
to be good and pleasant, is, to eat and drink, and 
to see pleasure in all one’s efforts that one attempts 
under the sun, for the number of the days that God 
gives to us;—for that is one’s lot. Also that every man 
to whom God has given wealth, and treasures, and 
power, should taste of them, and enjoy his lot, and 
take pleasure in whatever work God appoints for 
him, so that he may not too much think upon the 
day of his life, when God removes him from the joys 
of his heart! 


THe PuitosopHic MIND 


Who is philosophic? and who knows how to ex- 
plain a thing?—The education of a man brightens 
his face, and greatly changes his expression. I com- 
mend a King to take care, because of the promises 
he swore to God. Be not in haste to go from be- 
fore Him, nor persist in a wrong thing, for He does 


16 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


all He pleases. Although a King’s word is power- 
ful, and who dare say to him, “What are you do- 
ing?”—regard The Law;—and learn not bad prac- 
tices,—but with an intelligent heart learn opportun- 
ity, and justice. For there is an opportunity for 
every purpose and decision, since many miseries 
are upon mankind. For none of us know what will 
be; and as to what may happen, who can inform 
us? No man has power over the breath, to retain 
the breath, and none is powerful in the day of 
death. And there is no discharge from that war; and 
villainy cannot deliver its possessor. I observed all 
this when I applied my mind to all the things that 
are done under the sun, during the period that man 
has power over man, to injure him. And I examined 
the tombs of the wicked carefully, who had come to, 
and departed from, the Holy Place, and were forgot- 
ten in the City where they had done so. They also 
were vanity. And I concluded that when quick pun- 
ishment is not inflicted upon crime, then the heart 
of the sons of Adam is set in them to do wrong!— 
Yet, although a sinner does wrong a hundred times, 
and evades from it,—yet I myself know that it will 
be well for those who reverence God,—who fear be- 
fore Him,—but it will not be well with the wicked; 
nor can they prolong their days like a shadow,— 
although they do not fear the presence of God. 


ON THE MYSTERY OF LIFE 


This is a puzzle that occurs upon earth;—There 
are good men who are treated as if they had done 
like the wicked;—and there are wicked who are 
treated as though they had done like the good. I 
said to myself, this is a puzzle!—So I, myself, com- 
nfend cheerfulness, as there is nothing better for a 


WISDOM OF KOHELETH 7 


man under the sun than to eat and drink, and be 
glad, and be at rest from his toil in the days of life 
which are given him under the sun. When I applied 
my mind to learn science, and to the investigation 
of the phenomena that are produced upon earth, I 
perceived that day and night there must be no sleep 
for one’s eyes. And having examined all the works 
of God, I perceived that it is not possible for a man 
to discover the whole of the result that is produced 
under the sun;—since however a man endeavours to 
investigate, he cannot discover all. And even if a 
philosopher should assert “I know!” he has not been 
able to discover it. For I have applied my mind to 
all that, and could only discover this,—that the 
Righteous and Philosophic in their labours are in 
the hand of God. Whether he likes it or dislikes it, 
man cannot know all that is before him!—To the 
wicked,—to the good,—and to the pure;—and to the 
depraved;—and to the worshipper, and to the one 
who neglects worship ;—to the Perjurer, and to him 
who respects his Oath, comes the same result! This 
is the grief in all that is done under the sun:—that 
one event happens to all; therefore, the mind of 
the Sons of Adam is full of grief, and agitation is 
in their hearts during their lives,—and after that,— 
the dead! For who, of the living, has his choice? 
Who is hopeful? Yet a living dog is better than a 
dead lion!—The living, however, know they will 
die; but the dead know nothing whatever.—And they 
have no more fame—for the remembrance of them 
is forgotten! And their former loves, and hatreds, 
and ambitions perish; and they have no more pos- 
session, for ever, in all that they accomplished under 
the sun! 


THE WISDOM OF SIRACH (ECCLESIASTICUS) 


CONSIDERATION FOR HIGH AND Low 


My son, deprive not the poor of his living, and 
make not the needy eyes to wait long. Make not a 
hungry soul sorrowful; neither provoke a man in 
his distress. To a heart that is provoked add not 
more trouble; and defer not to give to him that is 
in need. Reject not a suppliant in his affliction; and 
turn not away thy face from a poor man. Turn not 
away thine eye from one that asketh of thee, and 
give none occasion to a man to curse thee; for if 
he curse thee, in the bitterness of his soul he that 
made him will hear his supplication. Get thyself 
the love of the congregation, and to a great man bow 
thy head. Incline thine ear to a poor man, and an- 
swer him with peaceable words in meekness. Deliver 
him that is wronged from the hand of him that 
wrongeth him; and be not faint-hearted in giving 
judgment. Be as a father unto the fatherless, and 
instead of a husband unto their mother: so shalt thou 
be as a son of the Most High, and He shall love thee 
more than thy mother doth. 


Wispom’s Way witH HER CHILDREN 


Wisdom exalteth her sons, and taketh hold of 
them that seek her. He that loveth her loveth life; 
and they that seek her early shall be filled with 
gladness. He that holdeth her fast shall inherit glory; 

18 


WISDOM OF SIRACH 19 


and where he entereth, the Lord will bless. They 
that do her service shall minister to the Holy One; 
and them that love her the Lord doth love. He that 
giveth ear unto her shall judge the nations; and 
he that giveth heed unto her shall dwell securely. If 
he trust her, he shall inherit her; and his genera- 
tions shall have her in possession. For at the first 
she will walk with him in crooked ways, and will 
bring fear and dread upon him, and torment him 
with her discipline, until she may trust his soul, and 
try him by her judgments; then will she return again 
the straight way unto him, and will gladden him, and 
reveal to him her secrets. If he go astray, she will 
forsake him, and give him over to his fall. 


On HEALTH 


Better is a poor man, being sound and strong of 
constitution, than a rich man that is plagued in his 
body. Health and a good constitution are better than 
all gold; and a strong body than wealth without 
measure. There are no riches better than health of 
body; and there is no gladness above the joy of the 
heart. Death is better than a bitter life, and eternal 
rest than a continual sickness. Good things poured 
out upon a mouth that is closed are as messes of 
meat laid upon a grave. What doth an offering 
profit an idol? for neither shall it eat or smell; so is 
he that is afflicted of the Lord, seeing with his eyes 
and groaning, as an eunuch embracing a virgin and 
groaning. Give not over thy soul to sorrow; and 
afflict not thyself in thine own counsel. Gladness of 
heart is the life of a man; and the joyfulness of a 
man is length of days. Love thine own soul, and 
comfort thy heart; and remove sorrow far from thee; 
for sorrow hath destroyed many, and there is no 


20 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


profit therein. Envy and wrath shorten a man’s 
days; and care bringeth old age before the time. A 
cheerful and good heart will have a care of his meat 
and diet. 

FRIENDSHIP 


Sweet words will multiply a man’s friends; and 
a fair-speaking tongue will multiply courtesies. Let 
those that are at peace with thee be many; but thy 
counsellors one of a thousand. If thou wouldest get 
thee a friend, get him by proving, and be not in haste 
to trust him. For there is a friend that is so for 
his own occasion, and he will not continue in the 
day of thy affliction. And there is a friend that turn- 
eth to enmity; and he will discover strife to thy re- 
proach. And there is a friend that is a companion 
at the table, and he will not continue in the day of 
thy affliction; and in thy prosperity he will be as thy- 
self, and will hold over thy servants; if thou shalt 
be brought low, he will be against thee, and will 
hide himself from thy face. Separate thyself from 
thine enemies; and beware of thy friends. A faith- 
ful friend is a strong defence; and he that hath found 
him hath found a treasure. There is nothing that 
can be taken in exchange for a faithful friend; and 
his excellency is beyond price. A faithful friend is a 
medicine of life; and they that fear the Lord shall 
find him. He that feareth the Lord directeth his 
friendship aright; for as he is, so is his neighbour 
also. 

THE Pursuit oF WISDOM 


My son, gather instruction from thy youth up: and 
even unto hoary hairs thou shalt find Wisdom. Come 
unto her as one that ploweth and soweth, and wait 
for her good fruits; for thy toil shall be little in the 


WISDOM OF SIRACH 21 


tillage of her, and thou shalt eat of her fruits right 
soon. How exceeding harsh is she to the unlearned! 
And he that is without understanding will not abide 
in her; as a mighty stone of trial shall she rest upon 
him, and he will not delay to cast her from him. 
For wisdom is according to her name and she is not 
manifest unto many. 

Give ear, my son, and accept my judgment, and 
refuse not my counsel, and bring thy feet into her 
fetters, and thy neck into her chain. Put thy shoul- 
der under her, and bear her, and be not grieved with 
her bonds. Come unto her with all thy soul, and 
keep her ways with thy whole power. Search and 
seek, and she shall be made known unto thee; and 
when thou hast got hold of her, let her not go. For 
at the last thou shalt find her rest; and she shall be 
turned for thee into gladness. And her fetters shall 
be to thee for a covering of strength, and her chains 
for a robe of glory; for there is a golden ornament 
upon her, and her bands are a riband of blue; thou 
shalt put her on as a robe of glory, and shalt array 
thee with her as a crown of rejoicing. 

My son, if thou wilt, thou shalt be instructed; and 
if thou wilt yield thy soul, thou shalt be prudent. If 
thou love to hear, thou shalt receive; and if thou 
incline thine ear, thou shalt be wise. Stand thou in 
the multitude of the elders; and whoso is wise, cleave 
thou unto him. Be willing to listen to every godly 
discourse; and let not the proverbs of understand- 
ing escape thee. If thou seest a man of understand- 
ing, get thee betimes unto him, and let thy foot wear 
out the steps of his doors. Let thy mind dwell upon 
the ordinances of the Lord, and meditate continually 
in His commandments; He shall establish thine heart, 
and thy desire of wisdom shall be given unto thee. 


THE WISDOM OF AGUR-BEN-JAKEH, THE 
RIGHTEOUS 


Though I am but an ignorant man, and have not 
the genius of Adam; although I have never learnt 
Wisdom, nor know of the science Divine, of who 
mounts the skies and descends, who gathers the wind 
in his grasp, who spreads out the seas like a sheet, 
who fixed the bounds of the earth,—what is His 
Name? and the name of His Son?—Do you know? 
Rely on the promise of God,—add nothing to what He 
commands. Lest for falsification you suffer. 


THE DESIRE OF THE WISE 


I will ask two things from you,—take them not 
from me till death,—move delusion and falsehood 
afar, nor poverty give me, nor wealth, but feed with 
the bread that I need,—not full, for fear I forget, and 
cry, “Tell me, Who is the Lord?” Or I become poor, 
and should steal, and rebel at the name of my God. 


ADVICE AS TO CONDUCT 
To his Master accuse not a servant, lest he curse 
you, and you are in wrong, 
On DEpRAVITY AND CONCEIT 


There is an age that curses its fathers, and that 
cares not its mothers to bless; an age in its own eyes 
22 


WISDOM OF AGUR-BEN-JAKEH 23 


perfect, but never cleansed from its filth!—An age,— 
how haughty its glances! And its eyelids,—how 
lifted up! An age,—with swords for its teeth, and 
for its jaw-teeth sharp knives, to devour the weak 
of the earth, and the wretched among mankind. 


On CREED 


Lust possesses two daughters, who cry “Give! 
Give!” There are three that are never glutted, a 
fourth that says not “Enough.” The grave, and the 
closed-up womb; the earth unsated with water; and 
fire, that says not “Enough.” 


Four PROBLEMS 


To me these three are a wonder; and a fourth I 
understand not; the path of an eagle in air; the road 
of a snake on a rock; the course of a ship through the 
sea; and the power of the man over woman; and the 
way of a faithless wife, when she wipes her mouth 
and exclaims, “I have not committed a sin!” 


UNENDURABLE THINGS 


A land trembles under these three,—and under a 
fourth rests not;—under a slave when he rules; and 
a brute who is gorged with his food; and a hateful 
woman when married; and a servant heir to her 
mistress. 

Four WIsE CREATURES 


These four are small on the earth, but they are 
the wisest of wise ;—the Ants are a People not strong, 
yet in summer they store up their bread; Rabbits are 
not a powerful race, but they settle their homes in 
the rocks; the Locusts have not any king, yet they 


24. THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


all go out by their troops; a Spider you catch with 
your hands; yet she dwells in the mansions of Kings! 


THE Four STATELY CREATURES 


These three are stately in step;—and a fourth is © 
grand in its walk; the Lion, the strongest of beasts, 
that turns not his face from the whole; a greyhound, 
as well as a goat, and a king at the head of his 
troops! 

A FINAL CAUTION 


If you have displayed your folly, and if you have 
blundered, keep still. For churned milk produces 
butter, and wringing the nose brings blood, so churn- 
ing anger produces strife. 


WISDOM OF JOB 
Tue First ADDRESS OF ZOPHAR TO JOB 


No man is made right by his lips; for your chatter, 
should men become still, and your sneering should 
no one resent? For you say: “My conduct was spot- 
less, and I have been pure in Your sight!” How I 
wish God would grant you a word,—and against you 
would open His lips! and teach you the Wisdom 
Unseen,—for His Knowledge and power are wise,— 
it would teach you God pardons your faults. Can 
you find out God by research, though intently you 
seek the Most High?—Mount to heaven! Yet what 
can you do? Explore then the Grave,—What is 
found? He extends beyond limits of earth, and fur- 
ther than stretches the sea;—if He turns, and decides, 
and proclaims, who then can resist to His will? For 
He knows when a mortal is vile; sees his vice—that 
himself does not know, but man has a heart that is 
dull,—man is born but a wild ass’s colt. Yet if you 
will order your heart, and spread out your hands 
before Him, if you throw out your faults from your 
grasp, nor let wickedness dwell in your tent, you 
can lift up your face without shame, you then can 
be bold, and not fear; your sufferings will then be 
forgot, or remembered like streams that are passed! 
And your lifetime arise to its noon, for your life will 
break out into dawn, bringing comfort, because there 
is hope, and be shamed for your trust in the false, 

25 


26 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


and rest, and have nothing to fear,—and many will 
seek for your face;—but the eyes of the wicked will 
fail, and to them shall no refuge remain,—for their 
hope is their very last breath! 


REPLY OF JOB 


Job, however, answered, and said: 

Have I not heard plenty like that? What wretched 
consolers are you! Will the wind of your words have 
no end? or does something incite to dispute?—I, 
also, could speak like yourselves; if your souls were 
but now in my place; I my speeches could tack upon 
you; and wag my head just as you do. But I would 
support by my words, and console by the play of 
my lips! If Ispeak—my grief is not the less! And if 
silent it goes not from me! But now I am wasted 
away,—all my family you have destroyed, my 
wrinkles are telling my tale;—liars rise, and insult 
to my face, against me they gnash with their teeth; 
and torturers flame with their eyes, and your mouths 
belch upon me reproach, slap my cheek, and against 
me unite; for God has delivered to the bad, flung 
me to the hands of the vile!— 

I was happy! But now I am crushed. He has 
seized on my neck, and has shook, and has set as a 
mark for His darts, my breast by His archers is 
pierced, my gall poured unjustly on earth, and He 
breaks me with breach upon breach,—as when a 
fierce warrior assails! | 

I have covered my skin with a sack;—and my 
honour is rolled in the dust, my features are swollen 
with tears;—my eyelids are shadows of death! Tho’ 
no wrong has been found in my hand; and for purity 
always I prayed! Put no covering, Earth, on my 
blood! And let not my shrieks be concealed! My 


a 


WISDOM OF JOB 27 


witness I see in the skies, and my evidence is in the 
heights. Friends jeer;—but to God my eye weeps, 
that a mortal might plead before God, as a son of 
mankind for his friend! 

When my number of years has arrived, I shall 
walk on the unturning path! My spirit is writhing in 
pain, my days flying fast to the grave! Altho’ my 
deriders withstand, as an obstacle fixed in my sight! 
Oh! fix now my bail for Yourself ;—but who will give 
bond on my part? For You take common sense from 
their hearts, and so You rely not on them, to de- 
cide on the fate of their friend, so the sight of their 
children shall fail. I am placed as a proverb to 
men, and become a contempt in their sight! So with 
sadness my eyes are oppressed, and my form is con- 
sumed to a shade. The upright may wonder at this; 
—and the clean from pollution be roused; but the 
righteous will hold on his way, and the pure-handed 
add to his strength. But all you,—turn round, and 
be off! For Wisdom I find not in you!— 

My days fly! My purposes fail! The cherished 
ideas of my heart, can they change the night into 
day, by light that proceeds from the dark, when I 
measure my home in the grave, and in darkness I 
spread out my bed? When I call to my father, Cor- 
ruption, You, my Mother and Sister, the Worm?— 
But if so, then where is my hope? And my hope, who 
can ever behold, when gone down with my frame 
to the grave if together we rest in the dust? 


BiLpAD To JoB 


However, Bildad the Shuhite answered, and said: 
Pray when will you stop in your talk? Be sensible! 
then we can speak. Why are we regarded as beasts, 
as something unclean in your sight? He tears up 


28 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 

his soul in his rage! Should the earth be deserted 
for you? And the rocks be removed from their 
place?—Yes! The light of the bad is put out, and 
the gleam from the flame of his fire! And the light 
in his tent shall be dark, and the lantern above it be 
quenched! His vigorous striding will halt, and his 
tactics will lead to defeat, for his feet will be caught 
in his net, and himself bound about in his toils! His 
heel will be caught in a hole, a noose will be flung 
over him; a rope be concealed in the earth; and a 
trap for him laid on the road, be harassed by ter- 
rors all round, and his feet shall be broken to bits! 
A famine shall come on his strength, and destruction 
shall fix to his flank devouring the skin of his limbs, 
and the first-born of death gnaw his frame; his guard 
will be driven from his tent,—and the King of the Ter- 
rors march in;—who will dwell in his tent,—no 
more his,—and lightning be poured on his home. 
His root will be dried up below, and his branches 
be withered above; his memory will perish from 
earth; and his fame not remain in the streets! He 
be driven from dawn to the dark, and hunted away 
from the world! Without son, or grandson, in his 
tribe, and none to survive in his home. The Wes- 
terns will wonder at his day,—and the Easterns be 
seized with a fear. Yes! Such are the homes of the 
bad, such the place not acknowledging God! 


WISDOM OF TALMUD 
SELECTIONS FROM THE TALMUD 


Once, as the Rabbis tell us, the Roman Govern- 
ment issued a decree forbidding Israel to study the 
law. Whereupon Pappus, the son of Yehudah, one 
day found Rabbi Akiba teaching it openly to mul- 
titudes who had gathered around him to hear it. 
“Akiba,” said he, “art thou not afraid of the Govern- 
ment?” “List,” was the answer, “and I will tell thee 
how it is by a parable. It is with me as with the 
fishes whom a fox, walking once by a river’s side, saw 
darting distractedly to and fro in the stream; and, 
addressing, inquired, ‘From what, pray, are ye flee- 
ing?’ ‘From the nets,’ they replied, ‘which men have 
set to ensnare us.’ ‘Why, then,’ rejoined the fox, 
‘not try the dry land with me, where you and I can 
live together, as our fathers managed to do before 
us?’ ‘Surely,’ exclaimed they, ‘thou art not he of 
whom we have heard so much as the most cunning 
of animals, for herein thou art not wise, but foolish. 
For if we have cause to fear where it is natural for 
us to live, how much more reason have we to do so 
where we needs must die!’ Just so,” continued 
Akiba, “is it with us who study the law, in which 
(Deut. xxx. 20) it is written, ‘He is thy life and the 
length of thy days’; for if we suffer while we study 
the law, how much more shall we if we neglect it?” 
Not many days after, it is related, this Rabbi Akiba 

29 


30 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


was apprehended and thrown into prison. As it hap- 
pened, they led him out for execution just at the 
time when “Hear, O Israel!” fell to be repeated, and 
as they tore his flesh with currycombs, and as he was 
with long-drawn breath sounding forth the word 
“one,” his soul departed from him. Then came forth 
a voice from heaven which said, “Blessed art thou, 
Rabbi Akiba, for thy soul and the word ‘one’ left 
thy body together.” 

Once a Gentile came to Shamal, and said, “Prose- 
lytize me, but on condition that thou teach me the 
whole law, even the whole of it, while I stand upon 
one leg.” Shamai drove him off with the builder’s 
rod which he held in his hand. When he came to 
Hillel with the same challenge, Hillel converted him 
by answering him on the spot, “That which is hate- 
ful to thyself, do not do to thy neighbor. This is the 
whole law, and the rest is its commentary.” (Tobit 
iv. 15; Matt. vii. 12.) 

When Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai and his son, 
Rabbi Elazar, came out of their cave on a Friday 
afternoon, they saw an old man hurrying along with 
two bunches of myrtle in his hand. “What,” said 
they, accosting him, “dost thou want with these?” 
“To smell them in honor of the Sabbath,” was the 
reply. “Would not one bunch,” they remarked, “be 
enough for that purpose?” “Nay,” the old man re- 
plied. “One is in honor of ‘Remember’ (Exod. xxii. 
28), and one in honor of ‘Keep’ (Deut. v. 8).” There- 
upon Rabbi Shimon remarked to his son, “Behold 
how the commandments are regarded by Israel!” 

Not one single thing has God created in vain. He 
created the snail as a remedy for a blister; the fly 
for the sting of a wasp; the gnat for the bite of a 
serpent; the serpent itself for healing the itch (or 


WISDOM OF TALMUD 31 


the scab) ; and the lizard (or the spider) for the sting 
of a scorpion. 

When a man is dangerously ill the law grants dis- 
pensation, for it says, “You must break one Sabbath 
on his behalf, that he may be preserved to keep many 
Sabbaths.” 

Once when Rabbi Ishmael paid a visit to Rabbi 
Shimon, he was offered a cup of wine, which he at 
once, without being asked twice, accepted, and 
drained at one draught. “Sir,” said his host, “dost 
thou not know the proverb, that he who drinks off 
a cup of wine at a draught is a greedy one?” “Ah!” 
was the answer, “that fits not this case; for thy cup 
is small, thy wine is sweet, and my stomach is ca- 
pacious.” 

At the time when Nimrod the Wicked had cast our 
Father Abraham into the fiery furnace, Gabriel stood 
forth in the presence of the Holy One—blessed be 
He!—and said, “Lord of the universe, let me, I pray 
thee, go down and cool the furnace, and deliver that 
righteous one from it.” Then the Holy One—blessed 
be He!—said unto him, “I am One in my world and 
he is one in his world; it is more becoming that He 
who is one should deliver him who is one.” But as 
God does not withhold His reward from any creature, 
He said to Gabriel, “For this thy good intention, be 
thine the honor of rescuing three of his descendants.” 
At the time when Nebuchadnezzar the Wicked cast 
Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah into the fiery fur- 
nace, Yourkami, the prince of hail, arose before God 
and said, “Lord of the universe, let me, I pray thee, 
go down and cool the fiery furnace, and rescue these 
righteous men from its fury.” Whereupon Gabriel 
interposed, and said, “God’s power is not to be dem- 
onstrated thus, for thou art the prince of hail, and 


32 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


everybody knows that water quenches fire; but I,. the 
prince of fire, will go down and cool the flame 
within and intensify it without (so as to consume the 
executioners), and thus will I perform a miracle 
within a miracle.” Then the Holy One—blessed be 
He!—said to him, “Go down.” Upon which Gabriel 
exclaimed, “Verily the truth of the Lord endureth 
forever!” (Ps. cxvii. 2.) 

One peppercorn to-day is better than a basketful 
of pumpkins to-morrow. 

For the sake of one righteous man the whole world 
is preserved in existence, as it is written (Prov. x. 
25), “The righteous man is an everlasting founda- 
tion.” 

Rabbi Meyer saith, “Great is repentance, because 
for the sake of one that truly repenteth the whole 
world is pardoned; as it is written (Hosea xiv. 4), ‘I 
will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely, 
for mine anger is turned away from him.’” It is not 
said “from them,” but “from him.” 

He who observes one precept, in addition to those 
which, as originally laid upon him, he has dis- 
charged, shall receive favor from above, and is equal 
to him who has fulfilled the whole law. 

One wins eternal life after a struggle of years; an- 
other finds it in one hour. (See Luke xxiii. 43.) 

The greatness of God is infinite; for while with 
one die man impresses many coins and all are ex- 
actly alike, the King of kings, the Holy One—blessed 
be He!—with one die impresses the same image (of 
Adam) on all men, and yet not one of them is like his 
neighbor. So that every one ought to say, “For my- 
self is the world created.” 

“He caused the lame to mount on the back of the 
blind, and judged them both as one.” Antoninus said 


WISDOM OF TALMUD 32 


to the Rabbi, “Body and soul might each plead right 
of acquittal at the day of judgment.” “How so?” he 
asked. “The body might plead that it was the soul 
that had sinned, and urge, saying, ‘See, since the de- 
parture of the soul I have lain in the grave as still 
as a stone.’ And the soul might plead, ‘It was the 
body that sinned, for since the day I left it, I have 
flitted about in the air as innocent as a bird.’” To 
which the Rabbi replied and said, “Whereunto this 
thing is like, I will tell thee in a parable. It is like 
unto a king who had an orchard with some fine 
young fig trees planted in it. He set two gardeners 
to take care of them, of whom one was lame and the 
other blind. One day the lame one said to the blind, 
‘I see some fine figs in the garden; come, take me on 
thy shoulders, and we will pluck them and eat them.’ 
By and by the lord of the garden came, and missing 
the fruit from the fig trees, began to make inquiry 
after them. The lame one, to excuse himself, 
pleaded, ‘I have no legs to walk with’; and the blind 
one, to excuse himself, pleaded, ‘I have no eyes to 
see with. What did the lord of the garden do? He 
caused the lame to mount upon the back of the blind, 
and judged them both as one.” So likewise will God 
re-unite soul and body, and judge them both as one 
together; as it is written (Ps. 1. 4), “He shall call to 
the heavens from above, and to the earth, that He 
may judge His people.” “He shall call to the heavens 
from above,” that alludes to the soul; “and to the 
earth, that He may judge His people,” that refers to 
the body. 

One thing obtained with difficulty is far better than 
a hundred things procured with ease. 

In the name of Rav, Rabbi Yehoshua bar Abba 
says, “Whoso buys a scroll of the law in the market 


24 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


seizes possession of another’s meritorious act; but 
if he himself copies out a scroll of the law, Scripture 
considers him as if he had himself received it direct 
from Mount Sinai.” “Nay,” adds Rav Yehudah, in the 
name of Rav, “even if he has amended one letter in 
it, Scripture considers him as if he had written it out 
entirely.” 

He who forgets one thing that he has learned 
breaks a negative commandment; for it is written 
(Deut. iv. 9), “Take heed to thyself . . . lest thou 
forget the things.” 

A proselyte who has taken it upon himself to ob- 
serve the law, but is suspected of neglecting one 
point, is to be suspected of being guilty of neglecting 
the whole law, and therefore regarded as an apostate 
Israelite, and to be punished accordingly. 

It is written (Gen. xxvii. 11), “And he took from 
the stones of the place”; and again it is written (ver. 
18), “And he took the stone.” Rabbi Isaac says this 
teaches that all these stones gathered themselves to- 
gether into one place, as if each were eager that the 
saint should lay his head upon it. It happened, as 
the Rabbis tell us, that all the stones were swallowed 
up by one another, and thus merged into one stone. 

Why are the words of the Law compared to fire? 
(Jer. xxill. 29.) Because, as fire does not burn when 
there is but one piece of wood, so do the words of 
the Law not maintain the fire of life when meditatea 
on by one alone (see, in confirmation, Matt. xviii. 
20). 

“Knowest thou the time when the wild goats of 
the rock bring forth?” (Job xxxix. 1.) The wild 
goat is cruel to her offspring. As soon as they are 
brought forth, she climbs with them to the steep 
cliffs, that they may fall headlong and die. But, said 


WISDOM OF TALMUD 35 


God to Job, to prevent this I provided an eagle to 
catch the kid upon its wings, and then carry and lay 
it before its cruel mother. Now, if that eagle should 
be too soon or too late by one second only, instant 
death to the kid could not be averted; but with Me 
one second is never changed for another. Shall Job 
be now changed by me, therefore, into an enemy? 
(Comp. Job ix. 17, and xxxiv. 35.) 

“Like the hammer that breaketh the rock in 
pieces” (Jer. xxiii. 29). As a hammer divideth fire 
into many sparks, so one verse of Scripture has many 
meanings and many explanations. 

I would rather be called a fool all my days than 
sin one hour before God. 

He who observes but one precept secures for him- 
self an advocate, and he who commits one single sin 
procures for himself an accuser. 

“Repent one day before thy death.” In relation 
to which Rabbi Eliezer was asked by his disciples, 
“How is a man to repent one day before his death, 
since he does not know on what day he shall die?” 
“So much the more reason is there,” he replied, “that 
he should repent to-day, lest he die to-morrow; and 
repent to-morrow, lest he die the day after; and thus 
will all his days be penitential ones.” 

He who obliterates one letter from the written 
name of God breaks a negative command, for it is 
said, “And destroy the names of them out of that 
place. Ye shall not do so unto the Lord your God” 
(Deut. xii. 3, 4). 

Abba Benjamin used to say, “There are two things 
about which I have all my life been much concerned: 
that my prayers should be offered in front of my 
bed, and that the position of my bed should be from 
north to south.” 


36 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


“There are two ways before me, one leading to 
Paradise, the other into Hell.” When Yochanan, the 
son of Zachai, was sick unto death, his disciples came 
to visit him; and when he saw them he wept, upon 
which his disciples exclaimed, “Light of Israel! Pillar 
of the right! Mighty Hammer! Why weepest thou?” 
He replied, “If I were going to be led into the pres- 
ence of a king, who is but flesh and blood, to-day 
here and to-morrow in the grave, whose anger with 
me could not last forever, whose sentence against me, 
were it even unto death, could not endure forever, 
and whom perhaps I might pacify with words or 
bribe with money, yet for all that should I weep; 
but now that Iam about to enter the presence of the 
King of kings, the Holy One—blessed be He forever 
and ever!—whose anger would be everlasting, whose 
sentence of death or imprisonment admits of no 
reprieve, and who is not to be pacified with words 
nor bribed with money, and in whose presence there 
are two roads before me, one leading into Paradise 
and the other into Hell, and should I not weep?” 
Then prayed they him, and said, “Rabbi, give us thy 
farewell blessing”; and he said unto them, “Oh that 
the fear of God may be as much upon you as the fear 
Ofemanics i) 

Rabbi Ami says, “Knowledge is of gréat price, for 
it is placed between two divine names, as it is written 
(1 Sam. ui. 3), “A God of knowledge is the Lord,” 
and therefore mercy is to be denied to him who has 
no knowledge; for it is written (Isa. xxvii. 11), “It is 
a people of no understanding, therefore He that hath 
made them will not have mercy on them.” , 

When the Holy One—blessed be He!—remembers 
that His children are in trouble among the nations of 
the world, He drops two tears into the great ocean, 


: 
q 
; 





WISDOM OF TALMUD 37 
the noise of which startles the world from one end 
to the other, and causes the earth to quake. 

We read in the Talmud that a Gentile once came 
to Shamai and said, “How many laws have you?” 
Shamai replied, “We have two, the written law and 
the oral law.” 

To which the Gentile made answer, “When you 
speak of the written law I believe you, but in your 
oral law I have no faith. Nevertheless, you may 
make me a proselyte on condition that you teach me 
the written law only.” Upon this Shamai rated him 
sharply, and sent him away with indignant abuse. 
When, however, this Gentile came with the same 
object, and proposed the same terms to Hillel, the 
latter proceeded at once to proselytize him, and on 
the first day taught him Aleph, Beth, Gemel, Daleth. 
On the morrow Hillel reversed the order of these let- 
ters, upon which the proselyte remonstrated and 
said, “But thou didst not teach me so yesterday.” 
“True,” said Hillel, “but thou didst trust me in what 
I taught thee then; why, then, dost thou not trust me 
now in what I tell thee respecting the oral law?” 

Every man as he goest on the eve of the Sabbath 
from the synagogue to his house is escorted by two 
angels, one of which is a good angel and the other 
an evil one. When the man comes home and finds the 
lamps lit, the table spread, and the bed in order, the 
good angel says, “May the coming Sabbath be even 
as the present”; to which the evil angel (though with 
reluctance) is obliged to say, “Amen.” But if all be 
in disorder, then the bad angel says, “May the com- 
ing Sabbath be even as the present,” and the good 
angel is (with equal reluctance) obliged to say 
“Amen” to it. 


38 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


There were two things which God first thought of 
creating on the eve of the Sabbath, which, however, 
were not created till after the Sabbath had closed. 
The first was fire, which Adam by divine suggestion 
drew forth by striking together two stones; and the 
second was a mule, produced by the crossing of two 
different animals. | 

“Every one has two portions, one in paradise and 
another in hell.” Acheer asked Rabbi Meyer, “What 
meaneth this that is written (Eccl. vii. 14), ‘God also 
has set the one over against the other?” Rabbi 
Meyer replied, “There is nothing which God has 
created of which He has not also created the oppo- 
site. He who created mountains and hills created 
also seas and rivers.” “But,” said Acheer to Rabbi 
Meyer, “thy master, Rabbi Akiba, did not say so, 
but spake in this way: He created the righteous and 
also the wicked; He created paradise and hell: every 
man has two portions, one portion in paradise, and 
the other in hell. The righteous, who has personal 
merit, carries both his own portion of good and that 
of his wicked neighbor away with him to paradise; 
the wicked, who is guilty and condemned, carries 
both his own portion of evil and also that of his 
righteous neighbor away with him to hell.” When 
Rav Mesharshia asked what Scripture guarantee 
there was for this, this was the reply: “With regard 
to the righteous it is written (Isa. lxi. 7), ‘They shall 
rejoice in their portion, therefore in their land (by- 
yond the grave) they shall possess the double.’ 


Respecting the wicked it is written (Jer. xvii. 18),. 


39 


‘And destroy them with double destruction. 

Pride is unbecoming in women. There were two 
proud women, and their names were contemptible; 
the name of the one, Deborah, meaning wasp, and 


WISDOM OF TALMUD 39 
the other, Huldah, weasel. Respecting the wasp it 
is written (Judges iv. 6), “And she sent and called 
Barak,” whereas she ought to have gone to him. 
Concerning the weasel it is written (2 Kings xxii. 
15), “Tell the man that sent you,” whereas she should 
have said, “Tell the King.” 

If speech is worth one sela (a small coin so called), 
silence is worth two. 

If silence be good for wise men, how much better 
must it be for fools! 

For every evil silence is the best remedy. 

Silence is as good as confession. 

Silence in a Babylonian was a mark of his being 
of good family. 

Simeon, the son of Gamaliel, said, “I have been 
brought up all my life among the wise, and I have 
never found anything of more material benefit than 
silence.” 

Rabbi Akiba said, “Laughter and levity lead a man 
to lewdness; but tradition is a fence to the law, tithes 
are a fence to riches, vows are a fence to abstinence, 
while the fence of wisdom is silence.” 

When they opened his brain they found in it a 
gnat as big as a swallow and weighing two selas. 

Rabbi Oshaia asked, “What is this that is written 
(Zach. xi. 7), ‘I took unto me two slaves; the one I 
called Amiable and the other Destroyer’?” The staff 
called Amiable represents the disciples of the wise in 
the land of Israel, who were friendly one toward 
another in their debates about the law. The staff 
called Destroyer represents the disciples of the wise 
of Babylon, who in the like debates were fierce tem- 
pered and not friendly toward one another. What 
is the meaning of Babel or Babylon? Rabbi Yoch- 
anan says it means “confused in the Bible, confused 


40 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


in the Mishna, and confused in the Talmud.” “He 
hath set me in dark places, as they that be dead of 
old” (Lam. iii. 6). Rabbi Jeremiah said by this we 
are to understand the Babylonian Talmud. 

Rabbi Yochanan and Rabbi Yonathan traveled one 
day together; they came to two roads, one of which 
led by the door of a place devoted to the worship of 
idols, and the other by a place of ill fame. Upon 
which one said to the other, “Let us go by the former, 
because our inclination to the evil that waylays us 
there is already extinguished.” “Nay, rather,” said 
the other, “let us go by the latter, and curb our de- 
sires; so shall we receive a reward in recompense.” 
In this resolution they went on, and as they passed 
the place the women humbled themselves before 
them and withdrew ashamed into their chambers. 
Then Yochanan asked the other, “How didst thou 
know that this would occur to us?” He made answer, 
“From what is written (in Prov. ii. 2), ‘Discretion (in 
the law) shall preserve thee.’ ”’ 

“And the elders of Moab and the elders of Midian 
departed together” (Numb. xxii. 7). Midian and Moab 
were never friendly toward each other; they were 
like two dogs tending a flock, always at variance. 
When the wolf came upon the one, however, the 
other thought, “If I do not help my neighbor to-day, 
the wolf may come upon myself to-morrow”; there- 
fore the two dogs leagued together and killed the 
wolf. Hence, says Rabbi Pappa, the popular saying, 
“The mouse and the cat are combined to make a feast 
on the fat of the unfortunate.” 

Rabbi Yochanan, in the name of Yossi, the son of 
Zimra, asks, “What is this that is written (Ps. cxx. 3), 
‘What shall be given unto thee, or what shall be 
added unto thee, O thou false tongue’?” The Holy 


WISDOM OF TALMUD 41 


One—blessed be He!—said to the tongue, “All the 
members of the body are erect, thou only art recum- 
bent; all other members are without, thou art within, 
and not only so, for I have surrounded thee with two 
walls, one of bone and the other of flesh. What shall 
be given to thee, or what shall be added unto thee, 
O thou false tongue?” Rabbi Yochanan, in the name 
of Yossi, says, “He who slanders is an atheist, for it 
is written (Ps. xii. 4), ‘Who have said, With our 
tongues will we prevail; our lips are with us; who 
is lord over us?’ ” 

He who slanders, he who receives slander, and he 
who bears false witness against his neighbor deserve 
to be cast to the dogs. 

All animals will one day remonstrate with the 
serpent and say, “The lion treads upon his prey and 
devours it, the wolf tears and eats it, but thou, what 
profit hast thou in biting?” The serpent will reply 
(Eccl. viii. 11), “I am no worse than a slanderer.” 

Adonijah was deprived of life for no other reason 
than that he was given to quarreling. It is lawful to 
slander one so evil disposed as he was. 

God will say to the prince of hell, “I from above 
and thou from below shall judge and condemn the 
slanderer.” 

The third tongue (i.e., slander) hurts three parties: 
the slanderer himself, the receiver of slander, and 
the person slandered. 

Four classes do not receive the presence of the 
Shechinah: scorners, liars, flatterers, and slanderers. 

Why did Elijah employ two invocations, saying 
twice over, “Hear me! hear me!” (1 Kings xviii. 37). 
Elijah first prayed before God, “O Lord, King of the 
universe, hear me!” that He might send fire down 
from heaven and consume all that was upon the 


42 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


altar; and again he prayed, “Hear me!” that they 
might not imagine that the result was a matter of 
sorcery; for it is said, “Thou hast turned their heart 
back again.” 

The Rabbis teach concerning the two kidneys in 
man, that one counsels him to do good and the other 
to do evil; and it appears that the former is situated 
on the right side and the latter on the left. Hence it is 
written (Eccl. x. 2), “A wise man’s heart is at his 
right hand, but a fool’s heart is at his left.” 

For two sins the common people perish; they speak 
of the holy ark as a box and the synagogue as a re- 
sort for the ignorant vulgar. 

If in time of national calamity a man withdraw 
himself from his kindred and refuse to share in their 
sorrow, his two guardian angels come and lay their 
hands upon his head and say, “This man has isolated 
himself from his country in the day of its need, let 
him not live to see and enjoy the day when God shall 
restore its prosperity.” When the community is in 
trouble, let no man say, “I will go home and eat and 
drink, and say, Peace be unto thee, oh my soul!” 
(Luke xii. 19); for to him Scripture hath solemnly 
said (Isa. xxii. 13, 14), “Surely this manors shall not 
be purged from you till you die.” 

“If Mordecai, before whom thou hast begun to fall, 
be of the seed of the Jews, expect not to prevail 
against him, but thou shalt fall” (Esth. vi. 13). 
Wherefore these two fallings? They told Haman, 
saying, “This nation is likened to the dust, and is 
also likened to the stars; when they are down, they 
are down even to the dust, but when they begin to 
rise, they rise to the stars.” 

Of two that quarrel, the one that first gives in 
shows the nobler nature. 


WISDOM OF TALMUD 43 


He who sets aside a portion of his wealth for the 
relief of the poor will be delivered from the judg- 
ment of hell. Of this the parable of the two sheep 
that attempted to ford a river is an illustration: one 
was shorn of its wool and the other not; the former, 
therefore, managed to get over, but the latter, being 
heavy-laden, sank. 

On the day when Isaac was weaned, Abraham 
made a great feast, to which he invited all the people 
of the land. Not all of those who came to enjoy the 
feast believed in the alleged occasion of its celebra- 
tion, for some said contemptuously, “This old couple 
have adopted a foundling, and provided a feast to 
persuade us to believe that the child is their own 
offspring.” What did Abraham do? He invited all 
the great men of the day, and Sarah invited their 
wives, who brought their infants, but not their nurses, 
along with them. On this occasion Sarah’s breasts 
became like two fountains, for she supplied, of her 
own body, nourishment to all the children. Still 
some were unconvinced, and said, “Shall a child 
be born to one that is a hundred years old, and shall 
Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear?” (Gen. xvii. 
17). Whereupon, to silence this objection, Isaac’s 
face was changed, so that it became the very picture 
of Abraham’s; then one and all exclaimed, “Abra- 
ham begat Isaac.” 

Rava relates the following in the name of Rabbi 
Yochanan: “Iwo Jewish slaves were one day walk- 
ing along when their master, who was following, 
overheard the one saying to the other, “There is a 
camel ahead of us as I judge—for I have not seen— 
that is blind of one eye and laden with two skin- 
bottles, one of which contains wine and the other 
oil, while two drivers attend it, one of them an 


44 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


Israelite and the other a Gentile. ‘You perverse 
men,’ said their master, ‘how can you fabricate such 
a story as that?’ The slave answered, and gave this 
as his reason, “The grass is cropped only on one side 
of the track, the wine, that must have dripped, has 
soaked into the earth on the right, and the oil has 
trickled down, and may be seen on the left; while 
one of the drivers turned aside from the track to 
ease himself, but the other has not even left the road 
for the purpose.’ Upon this the master stepped on 
before them in order to verify the correctness of 
their inferences, and found the conclusion true in 
every particular. He then turned back, and. . 
after complimenting the two slaves for their shrewd- 
ness, he at once gave them their liberty. 

“If two parties deposit money with a third, one a 
single manah and the other two hundred, and both 
afterward appear and claim the larger sum, the de- 
positary should give each depositor one manah only, 
and leave the rest undivided till the coming Elijah.” 

“And I will make thy windows of agates”’ (Is. liv. 
12). Two of the angels in heaven, Gabriel and 
Michael, once disputed about this: one maintained 
that the stone should be an onyx, and the other as- 
serted it should be a jasper; but the Holy One— 
blessed be He!—said unto them, “Let it be as both 
say,” which, in Hebrew, abbreviated, is an agate. 

Three precious gifts were given to Israel, but none 
of them without a special affliction; these three gifts 
were the law, the land of Israel, and the world to 
come. 

The Jew that has no wife is not a man; for it is 
written (Gen. v. 2), “Male and female created He 
them and called their name man.” To which Rabbi 
Eleazar adds, “So every one who has no landed 


WISDOM OF TALMUD A5 
property is no man; for it is written (Ps. cxv. 16), 
‘The heaven, even the heavens, are the Lord’s, but 
the earth (the land, that is) hath He given to the 
children of Man.’ ” 

Three things did Moses ask of God: 1. He asked 
that the Shechinah (divine presence) might rest 
upon Israel; 2. That the Shechinah might rest upon 
none but Israel; and 3. That God’s ways might be 
made known unto him; and all these requests were 
granted. 

Three things proceed by pre-eminence from God 
Himself: famine, plenty, and a wise ruler. Famine 
(2 Kings viii. 2): “The Lord hath called for a fam- 
ine”; plenty (Ezek. xxxvi. 29): “I will call for corn 
and increase it’; a wise ruler, for it is written (Exod. 
xxxl. 2), “I have called by name Bezaleel.” Rabbi 
Yitzchak says, “A ruler is not to be appointed unless 
the community be first consulted. God first consulted 
Moses, then Moses consulted the nation concerning 
the appointment of Bezaleel.” 

Three dreams come to pass: that which is 
dreamed in the morning; that which is also dreamed 
by one’s neighbor; and a dream which is interpreted 
within a dream; to which some add one that is 
dreamed by the same person twice; as it is written 
(Gen. xli. 32), “And for that the dream was doubled 
unto Pharaoh twice.” 

Three things tranquillize the mind of man: mel- 
ody, scenery, and sweet odor. Three things de- 
velop the mind of a man: a fine house, a handsome 
wife, and elegant furniture. 

The Rabbis have taught that there are three sorts 
of dropsy: thick, resulting from sin; bloated, in 
consequence of insufficient food; and thin, due to 
sorcery. 


46 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


These three grow stronger as they grow older: 
the fish, the serpent, and the pig. 

These three will never see hell: he who is puri- 
fied by poverty; he who is purged by a painful flux; 
and he who is harassed by importunate creditors; 
and some say he also who is plagued with a terma- 
gant wife. 

There are three whom the Holy One—blessed be 
He!—Himself proclaims virtuous: the unmarried 
man who lives in a city and does not sin; the poor 
man who restores a lost thing which he has found 
to its owner; and the rich man who pays the tithes 
of his increase unostentatiously. Rav Saphra was 
a bachelor, and he dwelt in a large city. A disciple 
of the wise once descanted upon the merits of a celi- 
bate life in the presence of Rava and this Rav Saphra, 
and the face of the latter beamed with delight. Re- 
marking which, Rava said to him, “This does not 
refer to such a bachelor as thou art, but to such as 
Rabbi Chanena and Rabbi Oshaia.” They were 
single men who followed the trade of shoemakers 
and dwelt in a street mostly occupied by meretrices, 
for whom they made shoes; but when they fitted these 
on they never raised their eyes to look at their faces. 
For this the women conceived such a respect for 
them that when they swore they swore by the life 
of the holy Rabbis of the land of Israel. | 

There are three whom the Holy One—blessed be 
He!—abhorreth: he who says one thing but thinks 
another; he who might bear witness in favor of his 
neighbor but refrains from doing so; and he who, 
having seen his neighbor act disgracefully, goes and 
appears singly as a witness against him (thus only 
condemning, but not convicting, him, as the law re- 


WISDOM OF TALMUD 47 


quires two witnesses). As, for example, when Toviah 
transgressed and Zigud appeared against him singly 
before Rav Pappa, and Rav Pappa ordered this wit- 
ness to receive forty stripes save one in return. 
“What!” said he, “Toviah has sinned, and should 
Zigud be flogged?” “Yes,” replied the Rabbi, “for 
by testifying singly against him thou bringest him 
only into bad repute.” | 

There are three whose life is no life: he who 
lives at another’s table; he whose wife domineers 
over him; and he who suffers bodily affliction. Some 
say also he who has only a single shirt in his ward- 
~ robe. 

Three classes appear on the day of judgment: 
the perfectly righteous, who are at once written and 
sealed for eternal life; the thoroughly bad, who are 
at once written and sealed for hell; as it is written 
(Dan. xii. 2), “And many of them that sleep in the 
dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting 
life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt”; 
and those in the intermediate state, who go down 
into hell, where they cry and how! for a time, whence 
they ascend again; as it is written (Zech. xiii. 9), 
“And I will bring the third part through the fire, 
and will refine them as silver is refined, and will 
try them as gold is tried; they shall call on my name, 
and I will hear them.” It is of them Hannah said 
(1 Sam. ii. 6), “The Lord killeth and maketh alive; 
He bringeth down to hell and bringeth up.” 

Our Rabbis have taught that there are three voices 
which can be heard from one end of the world to the 
other: the sound emitted from the sphere of the 
sun; the hum and din of the city of Rome; and the 
voice of anguish uttered by the soul as it quits the 


48 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


body; but our Rabbis prayed that the soul might 
be spared this torture, and therefore the voice of its 
terrors has not since been heard. 

In three particulars benevolence is superior to 
almsgiving: almsgiving is only the bestowment of 
money, but benevolence can be exercised by personal 
service as well. Alms can be given only to the poor, 
but benevolence can be shown no less to the rich. 
Alms are confined to the living, but benevolence may 
extend to both the dead and the living. 

Beware of these three things: do not sit too 
much, for it brings on hemorrhoids; do not stand 
too much, for it is bad for the heart; do not walk 
too much, for it is hurtful to the eyes. But sit a third, 
stand a third, and walk a third. 

Three things weaken the strength of man: fear, 
travel and sin. Fear, as it is written (Ps. xxxviii. 10), 
“My heart palpitates, my strength faileth me.” 
Travel, as it is written (Ps. cii. 23), “He hath weak- 
ened my strength in the way.” Sin, as it is writ- 
ten (Ps. xxxl. 10), ay strength faileth me, because 
of my iniquity.” 

There are three crowns: the crown of the law, 
the crown of the priesthood, and the crown of roy- 
alty; but the crown of a good name surpasses them 
all. 

He who possesses these three virtues is a disciple 
of Abraham our father, and he who possesses the 
three contrary vices is a son of Balaam the Wicked. 
The disciples of our father Abraham have a kindly 
eye, a loyal spirit, and a lowly mind. The disciples 
of Balaam the Wicked have an evil eye, a proud 
spirit, and a grasping soul. 

Three things are said respecting the children of 
men: he who gives alms brings a blessing on him- 


WISDOM OF TALMUD 49 


self; he who lends does better; he who gives away 
half of what he hath to spare does best of all. 

There are three classes of disciples, and among 
them three grades of worth: he ranks first who 
asks and answers when asked; he who asks but does 
not answer ranks next; but he who neither asks nor 
answers ranks lowest of all. 

Over these three does God weep every day: over 
him who is able to study the law but neglects it; 
over him who studies it amid difficulties hard to over- 
come; and over the ruler who behaves arrogantly 
toward the community he should protect. 

Rabbi Yochanan says there are three keys in the 
hands of the Holy One!—blessed be He!—which He 
never intrusts to the disposal of a messenger, and 
they are these: (1) The key of rain, (2) the key 
of life, and (3) the key of reviving the dead. The 
key of rain, for it is written (Deut. xxviii. 12), “The 
Lord shall open unto thee His good treasure, the 
heaven to give the rain unto thy land in season”; the 
key of life, as itis written (Gen. xxx. 22), “God heark- 
ened unto her, and opened her womb”; the key of 
reviving the dead, for it is written (Ezek. xxxvii. 13), 
“When I have opened your graves, and brought you 
up out of your graves, and shall put my spirit in you, 
and ye shall live,” etc. 

A disciple of the wise who makes light of the wash- 
ing of hands is contemptible; but more contemptible 
is he who begins to eat before his guest; more con- 
temptible is that guest who invites another guest; and 
still more contemptible is he who begins to eat be- 
fore a disciple of the wise; but contemptible before 
all these three put together is that guest which 
troubles another guest. 

The Rabbis teach there are three that have a share 


50 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


in a man: God, and his father and mother. The 
father’s part consists of all that is white in him— 
the bones, the veins, the nails, the brain, and the 
white of the eye. The mother’s part consists of all 
that is red in him—the skin, the flesh, the hair, and 
the black part of the eye. God’s part consists of the 
breath, and the soul, the physiognomy, sight and 
hearing, speech, motive power, knowledge, under- 
standing, and wisdom. And when the time comes that 
the man should depart from the world, God takes 
away His part, and leaves those which belong to the 
father and mother. Rav Pappa says, “This is the 
meaning of the proverb, ‘Shake off the salt and throw 
the flesh to the dogs.’ ” 

Turnus Rufus once said to Rabbi Akiba, “If your 
God is a friend to the poor, why doesn’t he feed 
them?” To which he promptly replied, “That we by 
maintaining them may escape the condemnation of 
Gehenna.” “On the contrary,” said the Emperor, 
“the very fact of your maintaining the poor will con- 
demn you to Gehenna. I will tell thee by a parable 
whereto this is like. It is as if a king of our own 
flesh and blood should imprison a servant who has 
offended him, and command that neither food nor 
drink should be given him, and as if one of his sub- 
jects, in spite of him, should go and supply him 
with both. When the king hears of it will he not | 
be angry with that man? And ye are called servants, 
as it is said (Lev. xxv. 55), ‘For unto me the children 
of Israel are servants.’” To this Rabbi Akiba re- 
plied, “And I too will tell thee a parable whereunto 
the thing is like. It is like a king of our own flesh 
and blood who, being angry with his son, imprisons 
him, and orders that neither food nor drink be given 
him, and one goes and gives him both to eat and 


WISDOM OF TALMUD 51 


drink. When the king hears of it will he not hand- 
somely reward that man? And we are sons, as it 
is written (Deut. xiv. 1), ‘Ye are the sons of the Lord 
your God.” “True,” the Emperor replied, “ye are 
both sons and servants; sons when ye do the will 
of God; servants when ye do not; and now ye are 
not doing the will of God.” 

Certain philosophers once asked the elders at 
Rome, “If your God has no pleasure in idolatry, why 
does He not destroy the objects of it?” “And so 
He would,” was the reply, “if only such objects were 
worshiped as the world does not stand in need of; 
but you idolators will worship the sun and moon, 
the stars and the constellations. Should He destroy 
the world because of the fools there are in it? No! 
The world goes on as it has done all the same, but 
they who abuse it will have to answer for their con- 
duct. On your philosophy, when one steals a meas- 
ure of wheat and sows it in his field, it should by 
rights produce no crop; nevertheless the world goes 
on as if no wrong had been done, and they who abuse 
it will one day smart for it.” 

Caesar once said to Rabbi Tanchum, “Come, now, 
let us be one people.” “Very well,” said Rabbi 
Tanchum, “only we, being circumcised, cannot pos- 
sibly become like you; if, however, ye become cir- 
cumcised, we shall be alike in that regard anyhow, 
and so be as one people.” The Emperor said, “Thou | 
hast reasonably answered, but the Roman law is, that 
he who nonpluses his ruler and puts him to silence 
shall be cast to the lions.” The word was no sooner 
uttered than the Rabbi was thrown into the den, but 
the lions stood aloof and did not even touch him. A 
Sadducee, who looked on, remarked, “The lions do 
not devour him because they are not hungry,” but 


52° THRE WISDOM OF DR ESICE BRE W's 


when, at the royal command, the Sadducee himself 
was thrown in, he had scarcely reached the lions be- 
fore they fell upon him and began to tear his flesh 
and devour him. 

Turnus Rufus asked this question also of Rabbi 
Akiba, “Why is the Sabbath distinguished from other 
days?” Rabbi Akiba replied, “Why art thou distin- 
guished from other men?” The answer was, “Be- 
cause it hath pleased my Master thus to honor me.” 
And so retorted Akiba, “It hath pleased God to honor 
His Sabbath.” “But what I mean,” replied the other, 
“was how dost thou know that it is the Sabbath- 
day?” The reply was, “The river Sambatyon proves 
it; the necromancer proves it; the grave of thy father 
proves it, for the smoke thereof rises not on the Sab- 
bath!” 

Rav Ulla was once asked, “To what extent is one 
bound to honor his father and mother?” To which 
he replied, “See what a Gentile of Askelon once did, 
Dammah ben Nethina by name. The sages one day 
required goods to the value of sixty myriads, for 
which they were ready to pay the price, but the key 
of the store-room happened to be under the pillow 
of his father, who was fast asleep, and Dammah 
would not disturb him.” Rabbi Eliezer was once 
asked the same question, and he gave the same an- 
swer, adding an interesting fact to the illustration: 
“The sages were seeking after precious stones for the 
high priest’s breastplate, to the value of some sixty 
or eighty myriads of golden denarii, but the key of 
the jewel-chest happened to be under the pillow 
of his father, who was asleep at the time, and he 
would not wake him. In the following year, how- 
ever, the Holy One—blessed be He!—rewarded him 
with the birth of a red heifer among his herds, for 


WISDOM OF TALMUD 53 


which the sages readily paid him such a sum as 
compensated him fully for the loss he sustained in 
honoring his parent.” 

Rabbi Yoshua, the son of Korcha, relates: “An 
aged inhabitant of Jerusalem once told me that in 
this valley two hundred and eleven thousand myriads 
were massacred by Nebuzaradan, captain of the 
guard, and in Jerusalem itself he slaughtered upon 
one stone ninety-four myriads, so that the blood 
flowed till it touched the blood of Zachariah, that it 
might be fulfilled which is said (Hos. ii. 4), ‘And 
blood toucheth blood.’ When he saw the blood of 
Zachariah, and noticed that it was boiling and agi- 
tated, he asked, ‘What is this?’ and he was told that 
it was the spilled blood of the sacrifices. Then he 
ordered blood from the sacrifices to be brought and 
compared it with the blood of the murdered prophet, 
when, finding the one unlike the other, he said, ‘If 
ye tell me the truth, well and good; if not, I will 
comb your flesh with iron currycombs!’ Upon this 
they confessed, ‘He was a prophet, and because he 
rebuked us on matters of religion, we arose and 
killed him, and it is now some years since his blood 
has been in the restless condition in which thou seest 
it. ‘Well,’ said he, ‘I will pacify him. He then 
brought the greater and lesser Sanhedrin.” 


THE HEART OF THE TALMUD 


MAN 


Who is wise?—He who learns from everybody. 
Who is strong?—He who conquers himself. 

Who is rich?—He who is satisfied with what he has. 
Who is honorable?—-He whom his neighbors honor. 


There are three conditions which will show what a 
man is: The flowing cup, the well-filled purse, and 
his anger. 


The Brute is not afraid of sin. 

The Ignoramus cannot be truly pious. 

The Timid cannot learn. 

The Bully cannot teach. 

And he who trades always will never be wise. 


Much meat-—-many words; 

Many possessions—much worry; 

Many women—much superstition; 

Many maid servants—much immorality; 
Many servants—much thievery; 

More science—more life; 

More studies—more wisdom; 

More advance—more understanding; 
More justice—more peace! 


LIFE AND THE WORLD 
The world stands upon three things: science, religion 
and charity. 
54 


THE HEART OF THE. TALMUD 55 


One hour of science and good works in this world 
is better than all the promised joys of the next! 
For a long time there was a dispute between two 
schools of thought upon the value of Life. One 
school declared: “To live is better than not to live 
at all!” And the other claimed that it was better 
not to live at all than to live! Finally they came 
to an agreement,.and it was this: “It is better for 
men not to be compelled to live at all; but now that 
they are on earth, they should try to make the best 
of it, and do a great many good deeds during their 

lives.” 

There are three persons whose life is no life at all: 
the soft-hearted, the hard-hearted and the heavy- 
hearted. 

No man completes his life without having more than 
half of his wishes unfulfilled. 

Better let men kill you than that you should kill 
them. For your blood is not any redder than that 
of your neighbor. 


Goop AND Bap Luck 


Misfortune is bad enough when it gets here—why 
suffer in advance by worrying over it? 

Let not worry enter your heart, for worry has killed 
many men. 


WISDOM AND FOLLY 


There are seven qualities which identify the wise 
man: he does not speak his opinion first, when a 
greater person than he is present; he never in- 
terrupts a speaker; he does not answer prema- 
turely nor without deliberation; he asks questions 
and answers to the point; he discusses things in 


56 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


their proper order and one at a time; if he should 
be ignorant of a subject, he admits it; and he ad- 
mits a mistake which he has made. The fool and 
simpleton never admit a mistake. 

If a man holds virtue higher than wisdom, his own 
wisdom shall endure; but if he should think wis- 
dom greater than virtue, his wisdom will vanish. 


PIETY AND VIRTUE 


There are three who deserve a heavenly reward: a 
bachelor who lives in the city and leads a chaste 
life; a poor man who finds a well-filled purse and 
returns it to the owner; and a rich man who 
secretly gives of his profits to the needy. 

When a man dies he cannot take with him his silver, 
nor his gold, nor pearls and jewels; the only things 
that go with him are his piety and his good deeds. 
Piety leads you while you walk the road of life; 
piety guards you when you lie down to die, and 
piety intercedes for you when you awaken in the 
eternal life—There was a man who had three 
friends. He thought but little of the first, more of 
the second and most of the third. One day the 
king called for this man, to answer charges that 
had been placed against him. He was greatly 
afraid and went to the first friend and begged him 
to intercede for him. This friend refused to go 
with him to the palace. The second friend said: 
“T will go with you to the door of the palace, but 
I will not enter with you nor speak to the king for 
you.’ And the poor frightened man went to the 
third friend, and the third friend not only came 
with him but entered the palace hall and pleaded 
for him before the court of the king. These three 
friends are: riches, relatives and piety. 


THE HEART OF THE TALMUD 57 
SIN AND VICES 


It is better to sin with good intentions than do a kind 
deed with evil intentions. 

Body and soul might quarrel about their guilt and 
sinfulness. The body could say: I am sure I did 
not commit any sins, because since you (to the 
soul) have left me, I have been lying peacefully 
and calm. And the soul could answer: Not I com- 
mitted the sin, but you! For since I left you, I 
have been in the realms of light free from all sin- 
ful desires. The Great Judge, however, will do 
as did the gardener whose fruit was stolen. He 
saw a cripple and a blind man nearby and ac- 
cused them, but each called attention to his own 
crippled condition, claiming he could not have 
committed the theft. But the gardener picked up 
the cripple, placed him on the shoulders of the 
blind man, and exclaimed: “That’s how you did 
it!” Thus body and soul sin together, although 
neither could sin alone. 

There are two men who hate God: he who speaks 
the opposite from what he thinks, and he who 
could bear witness to save an innocent man from 
punishment and yet does not do it. 


PASSIONS 


Unclean thoughts are at first only guests in our 
minds. But if they become too friendly, they soon 
will be masters of our minds. 

A sinful desire is at first thin as a spider’s thread; 
soon it increases in strength, and at last it will 
be strong as a ship’s hawser. 


58 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


LABOR 


A rabbi said to one of his graduating pupils: “If one 
should ask you to take a carcass to the market place 
and skin it there, do it; don’t say I am a learned 
student, and such work is beneath my dignity!” 


SCIENCE AND LEARNING 


Science and learning will bring peace to the world. 

Science is like the mother’s breast. As often as the 
baby seeks it, he finds new nourishment. And so 
does science yield new nourishment in new 
thoughts as often as the student seeks its fountain. 

If you have acquired wisdom and learning, what is 
lacking? Nothing. 

If you lack wisdom, what have you acquired? Noth- 
ing. 

Knowledge is not the main thing in life, but the use 
of it! 

Would you acquire knowledge and learning? Then 
eat bread with salt, drink water, sleep on the bare 
ground and lead a simple, arduous life. If you 
do this, you may succeed in your quest. 

Truly wise is he who knows that he knows nothing. 

The older a wise man gets, the wiser he usually is; 
the older a fool gets, the more stupid he is. 


MAN AND WIFE, MARRIAGE 


If your wife is small, bend down and whisper in her 
ear. (Before doing anything of importance, take 
counsel with your wife!) 


CALUMNY AND INSULTS 


“Do not shame your neighbor.” What does this in- 
volve? It means that you should not embarrass 


THE HEART OF THE TALMUD 59 


or insult publicly another man. If, for instance, 
he was formerly a criminal, or convicted of wrong- 
doing, you should not remind him of it; if there 
is something dishonorable in his family, do not 
talk about it; if he is suffering from a series of mis- 
fortunes, don’t tell him that all this bad luck is 
the result of his wickedness; don’t send a pur- 
chaser of corn to a man who never has sold any 
corn, and who has none to sell. Yea, it is even 
sinful to make it appear as if you wanted to buy 
a certain object and yet you know in your inner- 
most heart that you neither can nor want to buy 
it. And even if you hide your intentions from the 
human eye, remember that there is one eye from 
which you can hide nothing: the eye of the Lord 
Almighty. 
SILENCE AND SPEECH 


Silence is the fence built around wisdom. 

There is nothing better for man to cultivate than 
silence. For he who uses many words cannot help 
making mistakes. 

It is the usual way with tale-bearers: they start with 
telling the good of a man, but end by telling the 
worst, and that usually a lie. 

The mouth should not say anything which the heart 
does not think. 


GEMS FROM THE TALMUD 
Translated by I. Myers 


All virtues doth beneficence transcend, 
With it the Torah doth begin and end. 


Who shows compassion to mankind, 
From Heaven shall compassion find; 





60 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


But who compassion doth not own, 
To him shall none from Heav’n be shown. 


When Love upon a motive doth depend, 
’T will with the motive end; 

But when it hath no motive, Love is sure 
For ever to endure. | 


When love or hatred sways the heart, 
A man will from his rules depart. 


The man that is to slander given 
Denies, in sooth, the God of Heaven. 


Let justice flow from its pure source, 
Though piercing mountains in its course. 


Great care a man must ever take 
To show due honour to his spouse! 
Since only for his wife’s sweet sake 
Do blessings rest upon his house. 


Any ache and any smart 
Rather than an aching heart! 
Any ill and cruel fate 
Rather than a cruel mate! 


Intelligence to woman’s heart 
More than to man’s did God impart. 


Who fails his knowledge to increase 
Is sure to see his knowledge cease. 


The smaller stick can make the larger burn; 
From lesser scholars can the greater learn. 


To live by Toil’s of greater worth 
Than idle piety on earth. 


For his son a trade who doth not find 
Is but teaching him to rob mankind. 


THE HEART OF THE TALMUD 61 


Upon one pillar all the world doth rest,— 
Upon a “Righteous man, ’—for ever blest. 
The man that’s greater than his brother 
Has greater passions than the other. 

No man commits a sin, you'll find, 

If madness enters not his mind. 


Who twice commits a wrong 
Esteems it right ere long. 


The Holy One, who loveth all, 
Rejoiceth not when sinners fall. 


THE PREDECESSORS OF HILLEL 


From the Tractate: Pirke Aboth. (Ethics of the 
Fathers) 


Moses received the law at Sinai, and delivered it 
to Joshua, and Joshua to the elders, and the elders 
to the prophets, and the prophets to the men of the 
Great Synagogue. They said three things: Be de- 
liberate in judgment; and raise many disciples; and 
make a fence about the law. 

Simon the Just was one of the last survivors of 
the Great Synagogue. He said: On three things the 
-world is founded: on the Torah, on worship, on the 
practice of charity. 

Antigonus of Soho received (the law) from Simon 
the Just. He said: Be not as slaves that minister to 
their master with the object of receiving reward; but 
be as servants who serve their master without the 
object of receiving reward, and may the fear of the 
Lord be upon you. 

Jose ben Joezer of Zerada and Jose ben Jochanan 
of Jerusalem received from them. Jose ben Joezer 
of Zerada said: Let thy house be a meeting-house 
for the wise; and powder thyself in the dust of their 
feet; and drink their words with thirstiness. Jose 
ben Jochanan of Jerusalem said: Let thy house be 
opened wide; and let the needy be of thy household; 
and prolong not converse with woman. 

62 


THE PREDECESSORS OF HILLEL 63 


Joshua ben Perachiah and Matthei the Arbelite re- 
ceived from them. Joshua ben Perachiah said: 
Provide thyself with a teacher; and get thee a com- 
panion; and judge all men in the scale of merit. 
Matthei the Arbelite said: Keep aloof from an evil 
neighbor; associate not with the wicked; and aban- 
don not the belief in retribution. 

Judah ben Tabai and Simon ben Shetach received 
from them. Judah ben Tabai said: Act not the 
counsel’s part; when the parties to a suit are before 
thee, let them both be regarded by thee as guilty; 
but when they have been dismissed by thee, let 
them both be guiltless in thy eyes, as soon as they 
have submitted to thy judgment. Simon ben Shetach 
said: Be very searching in thy examination of wit- 
nesses, and be heedful of thy words, lest through 
them they learn to falsify. 

Shemaiah and Abtalyon received from them. 
Shemaiah said: Love work; hate titles; and seek no 
intimacy with those who have power. Abtalion said: 
Ye sages, be heedful of your words, lest ye incur the 
penalty of exile—ye might be exiled to the place of 
evil waters and the disciples who follow you might 
drink thereof and the Holy Name be profaned. 

Hillel and Shammai received from them. Hillel 
said: Be of the disciples of Aaron, loving peace, 
striving for peace, a friend of man and bringing him 
to the Torah. Shammai said: Make thy study of the 
Torah a permanent concern; speak little; and do 
much; and receive every man with a friendly counte- 
nance. 


HILLEL HANNASI 


Hillel, “the chief of Israel,” was the descendant of 
a renowned family; his father was of the tribe of 


64 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


Benjamin, while his mother was a lineal descendant 
of King David. He lived about a hundred years be- 
fore the destruction of the second temple, and was 
called Hillel the Babylonian, having been born in 
Babel. 

He was forty years of age before he left his na- 
tive city to commence his studies of the Law; he 
continued studying under Shemaiah and Abtalyon 
for forty years, and from then until his death, forty 
years after, he was chief of the college. 

During the period of his life as a student, Hillel 
was often cramped for means to pursue his studies. 
There is a generally accepted legend, to the effect 
that upon one occasion, when he lacked the fee de- 
manded by the porter for entrance to the college, 
he climbed up upon the window-sill, hoping to hear 
the lectures through the panes. It chanced to be 
snowing, and the student became so intensely inter- 
ested that he was quite covered with the snow with- 
out being aware of it, and became insensible through 
the cold. The attention of those inside was called 
to his state by the early darkening of the room, and 
by them he was carried in and restored to conscious- 
ness. 

Hillel’s elevation to the presidency of the college 
occurred in a remarkable manner. The eve of the 
Passover fell upon the Sabbath. The two chief 
Rabbis of Jerusalem were the sons of Bethera, and 
they were asked to decide whether it would be right 
and lawful to prepare the paschal lamb upon the 
Sabbath. They were unable to decide the point, 
when it was mentioned to them that a man of Babel, 
who had studied under two renowned teachers, 
Shemaiah and Abtalyon, was then in the place, and 
might be able to aid their decision. Hillel was ap- 


THE PREDECESSORS OF HILLEL 65 


pealed to, and he met the question with such wisdom 
and clearness that the sons of Bethera exclaimed, 
“Thou art more worthy and competent to fill the 
office than we are,” and through their means Hillel 
was elected chief of the college in the year 3728 a.m. 
Hillel was a man of very mild disposition, but he 
soon found in Shemaiah a rival of high and hasty 
temper. Shemaiah founded a college, which was 
called Beth Shemaiah, and between that institution 
and the Beth Hillel the controversies were sharp 
and prolonged, though in the great majority of the 
cases Hillel and his disciples had by far the best 
of the arguments. 

Hillel’s students numbered eighty; the most noted 
of whom was Jonathan, the son of Uziél. 

Upon one occasion an unbeliever approached 
Shemaiah and mockingly requested the Rabbi to 
teach to him the tenets and principles of Judaism 
in the space of time he could stand on one foot. 
Shemaiah, in great wrath, bade him begone, and the 
man then applied to Hillel, who said: 

“Do not unto others what you would not have 
others do to you. This is the whole law; the rest 
merely commentaries upon it.” 

Many silly students were fond of asking plaguing 
questions. 

“How many laws are there?” asked one of these. 

“Two,” replied Hillel, “the oral and the written 


“In the latter I believe,” said the student; “but 
why should I believe the other?” 

Hillel then wrote the Hebrew alphabet upon a 
card, and pointing to the first letter, he asked: 

“What letter is that?” 

“Aleph,” replied the student. 


66 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


“Good,” said Hillel; “now the next,” pointing to it. 
“Beth.” 

“Good again; but how knowest thou that this is an 
‘aleph’ and this a ‘beth’?” 

“Because we have learned so from our teachers 
and our ancestors.” | 

“Well,” said Hillel, “as thou acceptest this in good 
faith, so accept the law.” 

As an evidence of Hillel’s practical mind and his 
thorough appreciation of the demands and wants of 
his day, the following enactment is of interest. 

According to the Biblical laws, all debts were to 
be remitted in the Sabbatical year; as it is written: 
“At the end of every seven years shalt thou make a 
release; . . . the loan which he hath lent to his 
neighbor,” etc. (Deut. 15. 1-2). This measure, in- 
tended to adjust the inequalities of fortune, and well 
qualified for its purpose under some circumstances, 
was in the Herodian age the cause of much trouble. 
The wealthy man was loth to loan his money to those 
most in need of it, fearing to lose it by the provisions 
of this law. To remedy this evil, Hillel, without di- 
rectly abrogating the statute of limitation, ordained 
that the creditor might make a duly signed deposition 
before the Sabbatical year, reserving the right to col- 
lect his outstanding debts at any time that he might 
think proper. This enactment was beneficial alike 
to rich and poor, and became a law with the approval 
of the elders. 


SAYINGS OF HILLEL 


“My abasement is my exaltation.” 

“What is unpleasant to thyself that do not to thy 
neighbour; this is the whole law, all else is but its 
exposition.” 


THE PREDECESSORS OF HILLEL 67 


“Tf I am not for myself, who is for me? And if I 
am for myself alone, what then am I? And if not 
now, then when?” 

“Separate not thyself from the congregation.” 

“Judge not thy neighbour until thou art in his 
place.” 

“He who wishes to make a name for himself loses 
his name; he who does not increase his knowledge 
decreases it; he who does not learn is worthy of 
death; he who works for the sake of a crown is lost.” 

“He who has acquired the words of the doctrine 
has acquired the life of the world to come.” 

“Say not: When I am free from other occupations 
I shall study; for maybe thou shalt never be free.” 

“The uncultivated is not innocent; the ignorant 
man is not devout; the bashful man learns not. The 
wrathful teaches not; he who is much absorbed in 
trade cannot become wise; where no men are, then 
strive thyself to be a man.” 


INCIDENTS IN THE LIVES OF THE RABBIS 


Raspsi AKIBA 


It is man’s duty to thank God for the occurrence 
of evil even as for the occurrence of good, as it is 
written, “And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with 
all thy heart, with all thy soul, and with all thy 
might.” 

“With all thy heart.” With thy propensities 
towards good and towards evil. 

“With all thy soul.” Even though he should de- 
mand thy hfe. 

“With all thy might.” All thy personal possessions. 
No matter what measure be meted to thee, for good 
and for evil, be sincerely thankful. 

Rabbi Akiba was once traveling through the coun- 
try, and he had with him an ass, a rooster, and a 
lamp. 

At nightfall he reached a village where he sought 
shelter for the night without success. | 

“All that God does is done well,” said the Rabbi, 
and proceeding towards the forest he resolved to 
pass the night there. He lit his lamp, but the wind 
extinguished it. “All that God does is done well,” 
he said. The ass and the rooster were devoured by 
wild beasts; yet still he said no more than “All that 
God does is well done.” 

Next day he learned that a troop of the enemy’s 

68 


INCIDENTS IN LIVES OF RABBIS’ 69 


soldiers had passed through the forest that night. If 
the ass had brayed, if the rooster had crowed, or if 
the soldiers had seen his light he would surely have 
met with death, therefore he said again, “All that 
God does is done well.” 

It happened once when Rabbi Gamliel, Rabbi 
Eleazer, the son of Azaria, Rabbi Judah, and Rabbi 
Akiba were walking together, they heard the shouts 
and laughter and joyous tones of a multitude of 
people at a distance. Four of the Rabbis wept; but 
Akiba laughed aloud. 

“Akiba,” said the others to him, “wherefore laugh? 
These heathens who worship idols live in peace, and 
are merry, while our holy city lies in ruins; weep, 
do not laugh.” 

“For that very reason I laugh, and am glad,” an- 
swered Rabbi Akiba. “If God allows those who trans- 
gress His will to live happily on earth, how infinitely 
great must be the happiness which He has stored up 
in the world to come for those who observe His 
commands.” 

Upon another occasion these same Rabbis went up 
to Jerusalem. When they reached Mount Zophim 
and saw the desolation about them they rent their 
garments, and when they reached the spot where 
the Temple had stood and saw a fox run out from 
the very site of the holy of holies, four of them wept 
bitterly; but again Rabbi Akiba appeared merry. 
His comrades again rebuked him for this, to them, 
unseemly state of feeling. 

“Ye ask me why I am merry,” said he; “come now, 
tell me why ye weep.” 

“Because the Bible tells us that a stranger (one not 
descended from Aaron) who approaches the holy of 
holies shall be put to death, and now behold the 


70 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


foxes make of it a dwelling-place. Why should we 
not weep?” 

“Ye weep,” returned Akiba, “from the very reason 
which causes my heart to be glad. Is it not writ- 
ten, ‘And testify to me, ye faithful witnesses, Uriah, 
the priest, and Zachariah, the son of Berachiahu?’ 
Now what hath Uriah to do with Zachariah? Uriah 
lived during the existence of the first Temple, and 
Zachariah during the second. Know ye not that the 
prophecy of Uriah is compared to the prophecy of 
Zachariah? From Uriah’s prophecy we find, “There- 
fore for your sake Zion will be ploughed as is a field, 
and Jerusalem will be a desolation, and the mount of 
Zion shall be as a forest’; and in Zachariah we find, 
‘They will sit, the old men and women, in the streets 
of Jerusalem.’ Before the prophecy of Uriah was 
accomplished I might have doubted the truth of 
Zachariah’s comforting words; but now that one has 
been accomplished, I feel assured that the promises 
to Zachariah will also come to pass, therefore am I 
glad.” 

“Thy words comfort us, Akiba,” answered his com- 
panions. “May God ever provide us comfort.” 

Still another time, when Rabbi Eleazer was very 
sick and his friends and scholars were weeping for 
him, Rabbi Akiba appeared happy, and asked them 
why they wept. “Because,” they replied, “our be- 
loved Rabbi is lying between life and death.” “Weep 
not, on the contrary be glad therefor,” he answered. 
“If his wine did not grow sour, if his flag was not 
stricken down, I might think that on earth he re- 
ceived the reward of his righteousness; but now that 
I see my teacher suffering for what evil he may have 
committed in this world, I rejoice. He hath taught 
us that the most righteous among us commits some 


INCIDENTS IN LIVES OF RABBIS 7I1 


sin, therefore in the world to come he will have 
peace.” 

While Rabbi Eleazer was sick, the four elders, 
Rabbi Tarphon, Rabbi Joshua, Rabbi Eleazer, the 
son of Azariah, and Rabbi Akiba, called upon him. 

“Thou art better to Israel than the raindrops to 
earth, for the rain is for this world only, whilst 
thou, my teacher, have helped the ripening of fruit 
for this world and the next,” said Rabbi Tarphon. 

“Thou art better to Israel than the sun, for the 
sun is for this world alone; thou hast given light for 
this world and the next,” said Rabbi Joshua. 

Then spoke Rabbi Eleazer, the son of Azariah: 

“Thou art better to Israel,” said he, “than father 
and mother to man. They bring him into the world, 
but thou, my teacher, showest him the way into the 
world of immortality.” 

Then said Rabbi Akiba: 

“It is well that man should be afflicted, for his dis- 
tresses atone for his sins.” 

“Does the Bible make such an assertion, Akiba?” 
asked his teacher. 

“Yes,” answered Akiba. ““Iwelve years old was 
Manassah when he became king, and fifty-and-five 
years did he reign in Jerusalem, and he did what 
was evil in the eyes of the Lord’ (Kings). Now, how 
was this? Did Hezekiah teach the law to the whole 
world and not to his son Manassah? Assuredly not; 
but Manassah paid no attention to his precepts, and 
neglected the word of God until he was afflicted with 
bodily pain, as it is written (Chron. 33. 10), ‘And 
the Lord spoke to Manassah and to his people, but 
they listened not, wherefore the Lord brought over 
them the captains of the armies belonging to the king 
of Assyria, and they took Manassah prisoner with 


72 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


chains, and bound him with fetters, and led him off 
to Babylon; and when he was in distress he besought 
the Lord his God, and humbled himself greatly be- 
fore the God of his fathers. And he prayed to Him, 
and He permitted himself to be entreated by him 
and heard his supplication, and brought him back to 
Jerusalem unto his kingdom. Then did Manassah 
feel conscious that the Lord is indeed the (true) 
God.’ 

“Now, what did the king of Assyria to Manassah? 
He placed him in a copper barrel and had a fire 
kindled beneath it, and while enduring great torture 
of his body, Manassah was further tortured in his 
mind. ‘Shall I call upon the Almighty?’ he thought. 
‘Alas! His anger burns against me. To call upon my 
idols is to call in vain—alas, alas, what hope re- 
mains to me!’ 

“He prayed to the greatest of his idols, and waited 
in vain for a reply. He called to the lesser gods, 
and remained unanswered. Then with trembling 
heart he addressed the great Eternal. 

**Q Eternal! God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, 
and their descendants, the heavens and the earth 
are the works of Thy hand. Thou didst give to the sea 
a shore, controlling with a word the power of the 
mighty deep. Thou art merciful as Thou art great, 
and Thou hast promised to accept the repentance 
of those who return to Thee with upright hearts. As 
numerous are my sins as the sands which cover the 
seashore. I have done evil before Thee, committing 
abominations in Thy presence and acting wickedly. 
Bound with fetters I come before Thee, and on my 
knees I entreat Thee, in the name of Thy great at- 
tributes of mercy, to compassionate my suffering and 
my distress. Pardon me, O Lord, forgive me. Do 


m " —s 
ee a 


INCIDENTS IN LIVES OF RABBIS 73 


not utterly destroy me because of my transgressions. 
Let not my punishment eternally continue. Though 
I am unworthy of Thy goodness, O Lord, yet save me 
in Thy mercy. Henceforth will I praise Thy name 
all the days of my life, for all Thy creatures delight 
in praising Thee, and unto Thee is the greatness and 
the goodness forever and ever. Selah!’ 

“God heard this prayer, even as it is written, ‘And 
He permitted Himself to be entreated by him, and 
brought him back to Jerusalem unto his kingdom.’ 

“From which we may learn,” continued Akiba, 
“that affliction is an atonement for sin.” 

Said Rabbi Eleazer, the great, “It is commanded 
‘thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy soul 
and with all that is loved by thee.’ 

“Does not ‘with all thy soul’ include ‘with all that 
is loved by thee?’ 

“Some people love themselves more than they love 
their money; to them ’tis said, ‘with all thy soul’; 
while for those who love their money more than 
themselves the commandment reads, ‘with all that is 
loved by thee.’ ” 

But Rabbi Akiba always expounded the words 
“with all thy soul” to mean “even though thy life 
be demanded of thee.” | 

When the decree was issued forbidding the Israel- 
ites to study the law, what did Rabbi Akiba? 

He installed many congregations secretly, and in 
secret lectured before them. 

Then Papus, the son of Juda, said to him: 

“Art not afraid, Akiba? Thy doings may be dis- 
covered, and thou wilt be punished for disobeying 
the decree.” 

“Listen, and I will relate to thee a parable,” an- 
swered Akiba. “A fox, walking by the river side, 


74 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


noticed the fishes therein swimming to and fro, never 
ceasing; so he said to them, “Why are ye hurrying, 
what do ye fear?’ 

“*The nets of the angler,’ they replied. 

***Come then,’ said the fox, ‘and live with me on 
dry land.’ 

“But the fishes laughed. 

“*And art thou called the wisest of the beasts?’ 
they exclaimed; ‘verily thou art the most foolish. 
If we are in danger even in our element, how much 
greater would be our risk in leaving it.’ 

“It is the same with us. We are told of the law 
that it is ‘our life and the prolongation of our days.’ 
This is it when things are peaceful with us; how 
much greater is our need of it then in times like 
these?” 

It is said that it was but shortly after this when 
Rabbi Akiba was imprisoned for teaching the law, 
and in the prison in which he was incarcerated he 
found Papus, who had been condemned for some 
other offence. 

Rabbi Akiba said to him: 

“Papus, what brought thee here?” 

And Papus replied: 

“Joy, joy, to thee, that thou art imprisoned for 
studying God’s law; but woe, woe is mine that I am 
here through vanity.” 

When Rabbi Akiba was led forth to execution, it 
was just at the time of the morning service. 

“Hear, oh Israel! the Lord our God, the Lord is 
one,’” he exclaimed in a loud and firm voice. 

The torturers tore his flesh with pointed cards, yet 
still he repeated, “The Lord is one.” 

“Always did I say,” he continued, “that ‘with all 
thy soul’ meant even though life should be demanded 


INCIDENTS IN LIVES OF RABBIS 75 


of thee, and I wondered whether I should ever be 
able to so observe it. Now see, to-day, I do so; ‘the 
Lord is one.’”’ 

With these words he died. 

Happy art thou, Rabbi Akiba, that thy soul went 
out in purity for the happiness of all futurity is thine. 


ELISHAH BEN ABUYAH 


Elishah ben Abuyah, a most learned man, became 
in after-life an apostate. Rabbi Meir had been one 
of his pupils, and he never failed in the great love 
which he bore for his teacher. 

It happened upon one occasion when Rabbi Meir 
was lecturing in the college, that some students en- 
tered and said to him: 

“Thy teacher, Elishah, is riding by on horseback 
on this holy Sabbath day.” 

Rabbi Meir left the college, and overtaking Elishah 
walked along by his horse’s side. 

The latter saluted him, and asked: 

“What passage of Scripture hast thou been ex- 
pounding?” 

“From the book of Job,” replied Rabbi Meir. “ ‘The 
Lord blessed the latter days cf Job more than the 
beginning.’ ” 

“And how didst thou explain the verse?” said 
Elishah. 

“That the Lord increased his wealth twofold.” 

“But thy teacher, Akiba, said not so,” returned 
Elishah. “He said that the Lord blessed the latter 
days of Job with twofold of penitence and good 
deeds.” 

“How,” inquired Rabbi Meir, “wouldst thou ex- 
plain the verse ‘Better is the end of a thing than 


76 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


the beginning thereof.’ If a man buys merchandise 
in his youth and meets with losses, is it likely that 
he will recover his substance in old age? Or, if a 
person studies God’s law in his youth and forgets it, 
is it probable that it will return to his memory in his 
latter days?” 

“Thy teacher, Akiba, said not so,” replied Elishah; 
“he explained the verse, “Better is the end of a thing 
when the beginning was good.’ My own life proves 
the soundness of this explanation. On the day when 
I was admitted into the covenant of Abraham, my 
father made a great feast. Some of his visitors sang, 
some of them danced, but the Rabbis conversed upon 
God’s wisdom and His laws. This latter pleased my 
father, Abuyah, and he said, ‘When my son grows 
up ye shall teach him and he shall become like ye’; 
he did not cause me to study for God’s sake but only 
to make his name famous through me. Therefore, 
in my latter days have I become wicked and an apos- 
tate; and now, return home.” 

“And wherefore?” 

“Because, on the Sabbath day, thou art allowed 
to go so far and no farther, and I have reckoned the 
distance thou hast travelled with me by the footsteps 
of my horse.” 

“If thou art so wise,” said Rabbi Meir, “as to reckon 
the distance I may travel by the footsteps of thy 
horse, and so particular for my sake, why not return 
to God and repent of thy apostacy?” 

Elishah answered: 

“It is not in my power. I rode upon horseback 
once on the Day of Atonement; yea, when it fell upon 
the Sabbath, and when I passed the synagogue I 
heard a voice crying, ‘Return, oh backsliding chil- 
dren, return to Me and I will return to ye; except 


——— - 


INCIDENTS IN LIVES OF RABBIS 77 
Elishah, the son of Abuyah, he knew his Master and 
yet rebelled against Him.’ ” 

What caused such a learned man as Elishah to 
turn to evil ways? 

It is reported that once while studying the law in 
the vale of Genusan, he saw a man climbing a tree. 
The man found a bird’s-nest in the tree, and taking 
the mother with the young ones he still departed in 
peace. He saw another man who finding a bird’s- 
nest followed the Bible’s command and took the 
young only, allowing the mother to fly away; and 
yet a serpent stung him as he descended, and he 
died. 

“Now,” thought he, “where is the Bible’s truth and 
promises? Is it not written, ‘And the young thou 
mayest take to thyself, but the mother thou shalt 
surely let go, that it may be well with thee and that 
thou mayest live many days.’ Now, where is the long 
life to this man who followed the precept, while the 
one who transgressed it is unhurt?” 

He had not heard how Rabbi Akiba expounded 
this verse, that the days would be long in the future 
world where all is happiness. 

There is also another reason given as the cause 
for Elishah’s backsliding and apostacy. 

During the fearful period of religious persecution, 
the learned Rabbi Judah, whose life had been passed 
in the study of the law and the practice of God’s 
precepts, was delivered into the power of the cruel 
torturer. His tongue was placed in a dog’s mouth 
and the dog bit it off. 

So Elishah said, “If a tongue which uttered naught 
but truth be so used, and a learned, wise man be so 
treated, of what use is it to avoid having a lying 
tongue and being ignorant? Lo, if these things are 


78 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


allowed, there is surely no reward for the righteous, 
and no resurrection for the dead.” 

When Elishah waxed old he was taken sick, and 
Rabbi Meir, learning of the illness of his aged 
teacher, called upon him. 

“Oh, return, return unto thy God,” entreated Rabbi 
Meir. 

“What!” exclaimed Elishah, “return! and could 
He receive my penitence, the penitence of an apos- 
tate who has so rebelled against Him?” 

“Ts it not written,” said Meir, “ “Thou turnest man 
to contrition?’ (Psalm 90. 3). No matter how the 
soul of man may be crushed, he can still turn to his 
God and find relief.” 

Elishah listened to these words, wept bitterly, and 
died. Not many years after his death his daughters 
came, poverty stricken, asking relief from the col- 
leges. “Remember,” said they, “the merit of our 
father’s learning, not his conduct.” 

The colleges listened to the appeal and supported 
the daughters of Elishah. 


RABBI SIMON 


Rabbi Judah, Rabbi Jose, and Rabbi Simon were 
conversing one day, when Judah ben Gerim entered 
the apartment and sat down with the three. Rabbi 
Judah was speaking in a complimentary strain of 
the Gentiles (Romans). “See,” said he, “how they 
have improved their cities, how beautiful they have 
made them, and how much they have done for the 
comfort and convenience of the citizens; bath- 
houses, bridges, fine broad streets, surely much credit 
is due them.” 

“Nay, answered Rabbi Simon, “all that they have 
done has been from a selfish motive. The bridges 


INCIDENTS IN LIVES OF RABBIS 79 


bring them in a revenue, for all who use them are 
taxed; the bath-houses are for their personal adorn- 
ment—’tis all selfishness, not patriotism.” 

Judah ben Gerim repeated these remarks to his 
friends, and finally they reached the ears of the 
emperor. He would not allow them to pass un- 
noticed. He ordered that Judah, who had spoken 
well of the nation, should be advanced in honor; that 
Jose, who had remained silent instead of seconding 
the assertions, should be banished to Sephoris, and 
that Simon, who had disputed the compliment, 
should be put to death. 

The latter with his son fled and concealed him- 
self in the college when this fiat became known to 
him. For some time he remained there compara- 
tively safe, his wife bringing his meals daily. But 
when the officers were directed to make diligent 
search he became afraid, lest through the indiscre- 
tion of his wife his place of concealment might be 
discovered. 

“The mind of woman is weak and unsteady,” said 
he, “perhaps they may question and confuse her, 
and thus may death come upon me.” 

So leaving the city, Simon and his son took refuge 
in a lonely cave. Near its mouth some fruit trees 
grew, supplying them with food, and a spring of pure 
water bubbled from rocks in the immediate vicinity. 
For thirteen years Rabbi Simon lived here, until the 
emperor died and his decrees were repealed. He 
then returned to the city. 

When Rabbi Phineas, his son-in-law, heard of his 
return, he called upon him at once, and noticing an 
apparent neglect in the mental and physical con- 
dition of his relative, he exclaimed, “Woe, woe! that 
I meet thee in so sad a condition!” 


80 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


But Rabbi Simon answered: 

“Not so; happy is it that thou findest me in this 
condition, for thou findest me no less righteous than 
before. God has preserved me, and my faith in Him, 
and thus hereafter shall I explain the verse of Scrip- 
ture, ‘And Jacob came perfect.’’ Perfect in his 
physical condition, perfect in his temporal condition, 
and perfect in his knowledge of God.” 

Antonius, in conversing with Rabbi Judah, said to 
him: 

“In the future world, when the soul comes before 
the Almighty Creator for judgment, may it not find 
a plea of excuse for worldly wickedness in saying, 
‘Lo, the sin is the body’s; I am now free from the 
body; the sins were not mine?’ ” 

Rabbi Judah answered, “Let me relate to thee a 
parable. A king had an orchard of fine figs, which 
he prized most highly. That the fruit might not be 
stolen or abused, he placed two watchers in the or- 
chard, and that they themselves might not be tempted 
to partake of the fruit, he chose one of them a blind 
man, and the other one lame. But lo! when they 
were in the orchard, the lame man said to his com- 
panion, ‘I see very fine figs; they are luscious and 
tempting; carry me to the tree, that we may both 
partake of them.’ 

“So the blind man carried the lame man, and they 
ate of the figs. 

“When the king entered the orchard he noticed at 
once that his finest figs were missing, and he asked 
the watchers what had become of them. 

“The blind man answered: 

**T know not. I could not steal them; I am blind; 
I cannot even see them.’ 


INCIDENTS IN LIVES OF RABBIS 81 


“ ‘Neither could I steal them; I could not approach 
the tree.’ 

“But the king was wise, and he answered: 

“Lo, the blind carried the lame,’ and he punished 
them accordingly. 

“So is it with us. The world is the orchard in which 
the Eternal King has placed us, to keep watch and 
ward, to till its soil and care for its fruit. But the 
soul and body are the man; if one violates the pre- 
cepts, so does the other, and after death the soul may 
not say, ‘It is the fault of the body to which I was 
tied that I committed sins’; no, God will do as did the 
owner of the orchard, as it is written: 

“ “He shall call from the heaven above, and to the 
earth to judge his people’ (Psalms). 

“He shall call from the ‘heaven above,’ which is 
the soul, and to the ‘earth below,’ which is the body, 
mixing with the dust from whence it sprung.” 

A heathen said to Rabbi Joshua, “Thou believest 
that God knows the future?” 

“Yes,” replied the Rabbi. 

“Then,” said fhe questioner, “wherefore is it writ- 
ten, “The Lord said, I will destroy everything which 
I have made, because it repenteth me that I have 
made them’? Did not the Lord foresee that man 
would become corrupt?” 

Then said Rabbi Joshua, “Hast thou children?” 

“Yes,” was the answer. 

“When a child was born, what didst thou?” 

“T made a great rejoicing.” 

“What cause hadst thou to rejoice? Dost thou not 
know that they must die?” 

“Yes, that is true; but in the time of enjoyment I 
do not think of the future.” 


82 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


“So was it with God,” said Rabbi Joshua. “He 
knew that men would sin; still that knowledge did 
not prevent the execution of his beneficent purpose 
to create them.” 

One of the emperors said to Rabon Gamliel: 

“Your God is a thief, as it is written, ‘And the Lord 
God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he 
slept. And He took a rib from Adam.’ ” 

The Rabbi’s daughter said, “Let me answer this 
aspersion. Last night robbers broke into my room, 
and stole therefrom a silver vessel: but they left a 
golden one in its stead.” 

The emperor replied, “I wish that such thieves 
would come every night.” 

Thus was it with Adam: God took a rib from him, 
but placed a woman instead of it. 

Rabbi Joshua, of Saknin, said in the name of Rabbi 
Levi, “The Lord considered from what part of the 
man he should form woman; not from the head, lest 
she should be proud; not from the eyes, lest she 
should wish to see everything; not from the mouth, 
lest she might be talkative; nor from the ear, lest 
she should wish to hear everything; nor from the 
heart, lest she should be jealous; nor from the hand, 
lest she should wish to find out everything; nor from 
the feet, in order that she might not be a wanderer; 
only from the most hidden place, that is covered even 
when a man is naked—namely, the rib.” 

The scholars of Rabbi Simon ben Jochai once asked 
him: 

“Why did not the Lord give to Israel enough manna 
to suffice them for a year, at one time, instead of 
meting it out daily?” 

The Rabbi replied: 

“I will answer ye with a parable. There was once 


INCIDENTS IN LIVES OF RABBIS 83 


a king who had a son to whom he gave a certain 
yearly allowance, paying the entire sum for his year’s 
support on one appointed day. It soon happened 
that this day on which the allowance was due was 
the only day in the year when the father saw his son. 
So the king changed his plan, and gave his son each 
day his maintenance for that day only, and then the 
son visited his father with the return of each day’s 
sun. 

“So was it with Israel; each father of a family, de- 
pendent upon the manna provided each day by God’s 
bounty, for his support and the support of his family, 
naturally had his mind devoted to the Great Giver 
and Sustainer of life.” 

When Rabbi Eleazer was sick his scholars visited 
him, and said, “Rabbi, teach us the way of life, that 
we may inherit eternity.” 

The Rabbi answered, “Give honor to your com- 
rades. Know to whom you pray. Restrain your 
children from frivolous conversation, and place them 
among the learned men, in order that they may ac- 
quire wisdom. So may you merit life in the future 
world.” 

When Rabbi Jochanan was sick his scholars also 
called upon him. When he beheld them, he burst 
into tears. 

“Rabbi!” they exclaimed, “Light of Israel! The 
chief pillar! Why weep?” 

The Rabbi answered, “Were I to be brought be- 
fore a king of flesh and blood, who is here to-day and 
to-morrow in the grave; who may be angry with me, 
but not forever; who may imprison me, but not for- 
ever; who may kill me, but only for this world; whom 
I may sometimes bribe; even then I would fear. But 
now, I am to appear before the King of kings, the 


84 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


Most Holy One, blessed be He, who lives through 
all eternity. If He is wroth, it is forever; if He im- 
prisons me, it is forever; if He slays me, it is for the 
future world; and I can bribe Him neither with 
words nor money. Not only this; two paths are be- 
fore me, one leading to punishment, the other to re- 
ward, and I know not which one I must travel. 
Should I not weep?” 

The scholars of Rabbi J ee ay the son of Zakai, 
asked of their teacher this question: 

“Wherefore is it that, according to the law, the 
punishment of a highwayman is not as severe as the 
punishment of a sneak thief? According to the 
Mosaic law, if a man steals an ox or a sheep, and 
kills it or sells it, he is required to restore five oxen 
for the one ox, and four sheep for the one sheep 
(Exodus 21. 37); but for the highwayman we find, 
“When he hath sinned and is conscious of his guilt, 
he shall restore that he hath taken violently away; 
he shall restore it and its principal, and the fifth part 
thereof he shall add thereto. Therefore, he who 
commits a highway robbery pays as punishment one- 
fifth of the same, while a sneak thief is obliged to 
return five oxen for one ox, and four sheep for one 
sheep. Wherefore is this?” 

“Because,” replied the teacher, “the highway rob- 
ber treats the servant as the master. He takes away 
violently in the presence of the servant, the de- 
spoiled man, and the master—God. But the sneak 
thief imagines that God’s eye is not upon him. He 
acts secretly, thinking, as the Psalmist says, ‘The 
Lord doth not see, neither will the God of Jacob | 
regard it’ (Ps. 94.5). Listen to a parable. Two men 
made a feast. One invited all the inhabitants of 
the city, and omitted inviting the king. The other 


INCIDENTS IN LIVES OF RABBIS’ 85 


invited neither the king nor his subjects. Which one 
deserves condemnation? Certainly the one who in- 
vited the subjects and not the king. The people of 
the earth are God’s subjects. The sneak thief fears 
their eyes, yet he does not honor the eye of the king, 
the eye of God, which watches all his actions.” 

Rabbi Meir says, “This law teaches us how God 
regards industry. If a person steals an ox he must 
return five in its place, because while the animal was 
in his unlawful possession it could not work for its 
rightful owner. A lamb, however, does no labor, 
and is not profitable that way; therefore he is only 
obliged to replace it fourfold.” 


Rabbi Nachman dined with his teacher, Rabbi 
Yitzchak, and, upon departing after the meal, he 
said, “Teacher, bless me!” 

“Listen,” replied Rabbi Yitzchak. “A traveller was 
once journeying through the desert, and when weary, 
hungry, and thirsty, he happened upon an oasis, 
where grew a fruitful tree, wide-branched, and at 
the foot of which there gushed a spring of clear, 
cool water. 


“The stranger ate of the luscious fruit, enjoying 
and resting in the grateful shade, and quenching 
his thirst in the sparkling water which bubbled mer- 
rily at his feet. 


“When about to resume his journey, he addressed 
the tree and spoke as follows: 


“Oh, gracious tree, with what words can I bless 
thee, and what good can I wish thee? I cannot wish 
thee good fruit, for it is already thine; the blessing 
of water is also thine, and the gracious shade thrown 
by thy beauteous branches the Eternal has already 
sranted thee, for my good and the good of those 


86 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


who travel by this way. Let me pray to God, then, 
that all thy offspring may be goodly as thyself.’ 

“So it is with thee, my pupil. How shall I bless 
thee? Thou art perfect in the law, eminent in the 
land, respected, and blessed with means. May God 
grant that all thy offspring may prove goodly as thy- 
self.” 

A wise man, say the Rabbis, was Gebiah ben 
Pesisah. When the children of Canaan accused the 
Israelites of stealing their land, saying, “The land 
of Canaan is ours, as it is written, “The land of 
Canaan and its boundaries belong to the Canaan- 
ites,” and demanded restitution, Gebiah offered to 
argue the case before the ruler. 

Said Gebiah to the Africans, “Ye bring your proof 
from the Pentateuch, and by the Pentateuch will 
I refute it. ‘Cursed be Canaan, a servant of servants 
shall he be unto his brethren’ (Gen. 9. 25). To whom 
does the property of a slave belong? To his master. 
Even though the land belonged to ye, through your 
servitude it became Israel’s.” 

“Answer him,” said the ruler. 

The accusers asked for three days’ time to prepare 
their reply, but at the end of the three days they had 
vanished. 

Then came the Egyptians, saying, “God gave the 
Israelites favor in the eyes of the Egyptians, and 
they lent them gold and silver. Now return us the 
gold and silver which our ancestors lent ye.” 

Again Gebiah appeared for the sages of Israel. 

“Four hundred and thirty years,” said he, “did 
the children of Israel dwell in Egypt. Come, now, 
pay us the wages of six hundred thousand men who 
worked for ye for naught, and we will return the 
gold and silver.” 


INCIDENTS IN LIVES OF RABBIS 87 


Then came the children of Ishmael and Ketura, 
before Alexander of Mukdon, saying, “The land of 
Canaan is ours, as it is written, “These are the gen- 
erations of Ishmael, the son of Abraham; even as it 
is written, “These are the generations of Isaac, the 
son of Abraham.’ One son is equal to the other; 
come, give us our share.” 

Again Gebiah appeared as counsel for the sages. 

“From the Pentateuch, which is your proof, will 
I confound ye,” said he. “Is it not written, ‘Abra- 
ham gave all that he had to Isaac, but unto the sons 
of the concubines that Abraham had, Abraham gave 
gifts. The man who gives his children their in- 
heritance during his life does not design to give it 
to them again after his death. To Isaac Abraham 
left all that he had; to his other children he gave 
gifts, and sent them away.” 


SELECTED WISDOM FROM GREAT HEBREWS 
REVERENCE Gop AND HELP MEN 


Some people attaching themselves to one portion 
of the Decalogue, neglect the other. For, filled with 
the unmixed draught of religious yearning, they bid 
farewell to all other occupations and dedicate their 
whole life to God. Others, who believe there is no 
good beyond well-doing towards men, care only for 
human intercourse; and, by their social zeal, share 
their possessions with their fellows and seek to al- 
leviate distress to the utmost of their power. Now, 
both the exclusive lover of man and the exclusive 
lover of God we may rightly call half perfect. The 
perfectly virtuous are those who excel in both. 

PuHILo JUDAEUS, B.C. 20. 


THE ACCEPTED WoRrSHIP 


Do not seek for the City of God on earth, for it is 
not built of wood or stone; but seek it in the soul 
of the man who is at peace with himself and is a lover 
of true wisdom. 

If a man practises ablutions of the body, but de- 
files his mind; if he offers hecatombs, founds a tem- 
ple, adorns a shrine, and does nothing for making 
his soul beautiful, let him not be called religious. 
He has wandered far from real religion, mistaking 
ritual for holiness; attempting, as it were, to bribe 
the Incorruptible and to flatter Him whom none can 

88 


WISDOM FROM GREAT HEBREWS 8g 


flatter. God welcomes the genuine service of a soul, 
the sacrifice of truth, but from display of wealth He 
turns away. 

Will any man with impure soul and with no in- 
tention to repent dare to approach the most High 
God? The grateful soul of the wise man is the true 
altar of God. 

PHILO JUDAEUS. 


THE DEEPER SENSE OF GRATITUDE 


Moses has shown that we should all confess our 
gratitude for the powers we possess. The wise man 
should dedicate his sagacity, the eloquent man his 
speech, to the praise of God; the physicist should 
offer to Him his physics, the moralist his ethics, the 
scientist his science, and the artist his art; the sailor 
his successful voyage, the husbandman his harvest, 
the herdsman the increase of his cattle, the physician 
the recovery of his patients, the general his victory, 
the statesman his chieftaincy, the monarch his rule. 
Let no one, therefore, however lowly in station de- 
spair or scruple to become a suppliant of God. 

PuHILo JUDAEUS. 


THE PRAISE OF THE CREATOR 


There is an old story, invented by the sages and 
handed down by memory from age to age. They 
say, when God had finished the world, He asked one 
of the angels if aught were wanting on land or on 
sea, in air or in heaven. The angel answered that 
all was perfect; one thing only he desired—speech, 
to praise God’s works, or recount them, which would 
be their praise. The sincerity of truth would be their 
most perfect praise. And the Father approved the 


90 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


angel’s words, and not long after appeared the race, 
gifted with the muses and with song. This is the 
ancient story; and in consonance with its spirit, I say: 
It is God’s peculiar work to benefit, and His creatures’ 
work to give Him thanks. 

PHILO JUDAEUS. 


FEELING AFTER Gop 


The powers of God are ubiquitous; not merely for 
the benefit of pre-eminent men, but also for those 
who seem to be insignificant. To them, too, God 
gives that which harmonizes with the capacity and 
measure of their souls. 

Who is there so without reason and soul as never, 
either voluntarily or involuntarily, to conceive a no- 
tion of God? For a sudden apparition of the good 
frequently flits past even the wickedest; but they 
cannot retain or keep hold of it... . . For it quickly 
passes away from those who have lived beyond the 
bounds of law and justice; as, indeed, it would never 
have visited them at all if it were not to convict 
those who chose evil instead of good. 

PHILO JUDAEUS. 


THe UNFAILING REWARD 


All labor in the pursuit of that which is perfectly 
good, even if it fail to reach the goal, is sufficient 
of itself to benefit the laborer. The impulses towards 
excellence, though they fail to attain their end, give 
joy to those who have them. 

But the disciples of the true Word must be true 
men, lovers of temperance and order and reverence, 
who have laid the foundations of their lives in self- 
restraint and endurance and contentment, as the 


WISDOM FROM GREAT HEBREWS Ql 


safe harborage of their souls where they can lie at 
anchor without risk or harm. 
PHILO JUDAEUS, B.c. 20. 


PATHFINDERS 


Our laws do not call men to misanthropy, but en- 
courage people to share what they have with one 
another freely, to be enemies to injustice and eager 
for righteousness, to banish idleness and expensive 
living. They forbid making war from a desire of 
lucre; but bid us to be brave in defending our laws 
and inexorable in punishing malefactors. And I 
make bold to say that we are become the teachers 
of men in the greatest number of things, and those 
the most excellent. For what is more excellent than 
inviolable piety? What is more just than obedience 
to the laws? And what is more advantageous than 
mutual love and concord, and neither to be divided 
by calamities, nor to become injurious and seditious 
in prosperity; to despise death when we are in war, 
and in peace to apply ourselves to trade and agri- 
culture; while we are persuaded that God surveys 
and directs everything everywhere. 

FLAvius JOSEPHUS. 


THE SCHOOLING OF THE LAW 


Now I venture to say that no one can tell of many, 
nay, of more than two or three, that have abandoned 
our laws, or feared death, not the easiest of deaths 
which happens in battles, but which comes with 
tortures, which is the hardest of all. Indeed, I think 
they have put us to such deaths, not from their 
hatred of us, but rather to see a wonderful sight, 
namely: that there are men in the world who believe 


Q2 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


that the only evil is being compelled to do or speak 
anything contrary to their sacred laws. But men 
ought not to wonder at our courage; when they know 
how willingly we submit throughout our life to such 
practices, as working with our hands, living frugally, 
avoiding luxury and keeping of our days of rest. 
For those that can use their swords in war, and put 
their enemies to flight, cannot bear to submit to rules 
about their mode of living; whereas our being ac- 
customed willingly to submit to laws makes us 
readier to show our fortitude upon other occasions 
also. 
FLAVIUS JOSEPHUS, A.D. 37. 


THE PURPOSE OF THE COMMANDMENTS 


What are the things that we Jews are commanded 
or forbidden? ‘They are simple and well known. 
The first command is concerning God, and affirms 
that God is almighty and perfect, self-sufficient and 
sufficient for all other things; indeed, the beginning, 
the middle and the end of all things. He is manifest 
in His works and benefits, and more conspicuous 
than any other being whatever; but as to His essen- 
tial nature, most obscure. All materials, let them 
be ever so costly, are unworthy to compose an image 
of Him, and all arts are inartistic to express the idea 
of Him. . . . All men ought to follow and worship 
Him in the exercise of virtue; for this way of wor- | 
ship is the most holy. And we ought first to pray 
for the common welfare of all, and after that for 
our own, since we are made for fellowship with one 
another, and he who prefers the common good to 
his own private good is especially acceptable to God. 
And let our prayers and supplications be made to 


WISDOM FROM GREAT HEBREWS _ 93 


God, not so much that He would give us what is good 
as that we may only receive and use it as good. 
FLAVIUS JOSEPHUS. 


CHARITY 


It is incumbent on every Jewish house to practise 
charity, and to help the needy according to its power. 
For he who with compassion offers aid to the poor 
gives also a gift to God. But charity shall be done, 
wherever possible, in secret; and he that does it 
soothes the wrath of God, excited by human sins. 
Our Rabbis taught: Every collection or free-will 
offering for the poor shall be done by two men; the 
distribution thereof, however, by three; for this latter 
is like the decision of a court of law. Injustice must 
not be done to a poor man; the unworthy must re- 
ceive nothing, and the worthy must be denied 
nothing. 

The merit of the man who incites to charity is 
greater than that of the man who simply gives out 
of his overflow. 

The smallest gifts given in this world are united 
in the other world into a large sum, as the small 
scales are united into a strong armor. 

He whose joy it is to exercise charity, on him does 
God bestow worthy recipients of it; and to him that 
devotes himself to benevolence does God bestow the 
means thereto. 

He that repulses the poor that approach him re- 
sembles an idolator who denies God who com- 
manded him to have pity on the poor. 

By benevolence man rises to a height where he 
meets God; it is wise, therefore, to do a good work 
before prayer is begun. 

Even the poor man, that lives on alms, shall dis- 


94 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 
tribute a portion of that which he receives among the 


poor. 
Rass Acual, VIII Century. 


HATRED THE DESTROYER 


It is forbidden to an Israelite to bear hatred 
towards his neighbor. Because of the hatred of his 
brethren for Joseph, our forefathers were exiled in 
Egypt, where finally they became enslaved. And 
so our Rabbis taught: It is written: “Thou shalt 
not hate thy brother”; meaning also thou shalt not 
injure him, thou shalt not revile him, thou shalt not 
ill-use him. All these things the Law demands. 
Nay, more. It is added, “in thy heart”; whence fol- 
lows that we may not carry hatred concealed within 
our bosom, even when it results in no external act. 
In respect to punishment, the sin of hatred stands on 
the same level with the three chief sins, idolatry, 
immorality, and the shedding of blood. Because of 
these sins the first Temple was destroyed. But why 
was the second Temple destroyed? We know quite 
certainly that at that time the Holy Law was ob- 
served and works of piety were done. But a bound- 
less hatred raged between the various parties, even 
against those that were quite spotless both in moral- 
ity and in the Law. Only those that openly break 
the laws may one hate; that is to say, one may en- 
deavor to procure their punishment according to the 
Law, nothing further. But let the accuser always 
remember the earnest warning of our teachers: 
Three men are hateful unto the Lord: 

1. He that speaks other than he thinks; 

2. He that is able to bear witness in favor of an- 
other, and fails to do so; 


WISDOM FROM GREAT HEBREWS 95 


3. He that appears as a single witness and accuser 
of a fellow-man (since the law has laid down the 
rule that only two witnesses may do so). 

Rass Acuat, VIII Century. 


THE ANIMAL SOUL 


The Talmud tells the following: A calf that was 
about to be slaughtered fled to Rabbi Yehudah, the 
Prince, and hid its head in his garment. But he re- 
pulsed it, crying: “Go hence! for this hast thou been 
created!” For many years thereafter heavy troubles 
afflicted the Prince. It happened one day that he 
saw the serving maid about to destroy the young of 
a cat. “Do it not,” he cried, “for it is said: God’s 
mercy is extended over all His creatures.” And 
from this time on his burdens grew lighter, and fin- 
ally ceased. 

Noxious animals may be killed, but must not suffer 
unnecessary pain. The same holds good of beasts 
required for nourishment, or for the healing of the 
sick. We are not bidden to save the calf that min- 
isters to our sustenance. The evils that came upon 
the Rabbi were not punishments, but trials, such as 
God sends to the greatest and the best, so that others 
may take example from their conduct. For God de- 
mands accounting more strictly of those that are 
favored mentally than He does of ordinary persons; 
a hair’s breadth straying from the straight path is 
heavy sin in them. Rabbi Yehudah, the Prince, 
should not have used the words: “For this hast thou 
been created”; and he should have permitted the 
animal to find refuge, for a time at least, with him. 
For the contrary behavior in this great man and 
teacher has surely hardened the heart of many a 


96 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


one towards animals; nor was he justified in saying 
that the calf had only been created to be killed. 
And I would believe that every living being, even 
that which may be slaughtered, will be recompensed 
by the Creator for the agonies that it has endured. 
For it is opposed to justice to believe, what the words 
of the great Rabbi implied, that wrong should be 
done to any being, be it man or animal. 
Rasst Acual, VIII Century. 


FAITH AND KNOWLEDGE 
By Saadia Gaon (892-942) 


ON THE EXISTENCE OF A CREATOR 


After I had become fully convinced that all things 
were created and had a beginning, I began to inquire 
whether all these things had come about through 
themselves or whether they had been created by 
Something outside of themselves. And for three 
reasons which I shall mention immediately, I re- 
nounced the opinion that things had come about 
through themselves. 

The first proof is: Every body which we take from 
the mass of being and consider as having come about 
through itself necessarily brings forth the conviction 
that, by repeating its creative activity in a manner 
similar to that of its becoming, it must grow more 
powerful and stronger. If such a body created itself 
and if after creation it is still incomplete and weak, 
it need but repeat its creative activity to be complete 
and stronger; but if it cannot repeat this creative 
activity, even though it be complete and strong, it 
is nevertheless highly incomplete, since it no longer 
has any creative power. 

A second proof is the following. If we picture to 
ourselves that a thing has created itself, then this 
contradicts the division of time into past and future. 
For if we assume that it had created itself before its 

97 


98 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


appearance as a thing, then this contradicts our 
knowledge that it formerly was a nothing, and an 
absolute nothing can have no creative power. On 
the other hand, if we assume that it created itself 
after it already was, then self-creation was super- 
fluous, since it already existed. There can be no 
third division of time for self-creation excepting the 
present, but this, unreal, can explain no creative 
activity. 

Finally a third proof. If we assume that a body 
can create itself, this assumption is possible only 
after we have first assumed that it also has the 
power, on its own determination, to cease from self- 
creation, since it carries within itself the determina- 
tion of being. If we assume this, then we have in 
the body the contradiction of being and not-being; 
since to be able to do is already being. If with this 
ability we unite non self-creation, then it is as though 
the body did not exist. If, however, we combine in 
one substance such a contradiction as being and not- 
being, the procedure is evidently and decidedly false. 


On ANTHROPOMORPHISM 


We know that it is the very essence and nature of 
language to enlarge expression, to carry over what 
has been expressed, and to bring it nearer to our 
imagination. Figuratively it therefore says that the 
heavens declare, as (Ps. 19. 2), The heavens declare 
the glory of God; that the sea speaks, as (Is. 23. 4), 
The sea hath spoken, the stronghold of the sea; that 
death speaks, as (Job 28. 23), Destruction and Death 
say: We have heard a rumour thereof with our 
ears; that a stone hears, as (Joshua 24. 27), Behold, 
this stone shall be a witness against us, for it hath 
heard all the words of the Lord; that the mountains 


FAITH AND KNOWLEDGE 99 


break into jubilation, as (Is. 55. 13), The mountains 
and the hills shall break forth before you into sing- 
ing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their 
hands; that the hills clad themselves, as (Ps. 65. 13), 
And the hills are girded with joy; and many more 
that cannot be enumerated in a short compass. If 
one asks of what avail this extension of language 
which brings us so much doubt; were it not better to 
rely on more definite expressions which would spare 
us a presentation of God according to the senses— 
then I must reply as follows: If language used every 
expression in a single sense only and without exten- 
sion, then the means of expression through language 
would be slight and scarcely sufficient to express 
what we have in view. And if language desired to 
express everything, not by means of a transferred, 
but by means of a precise, epithet, then, in speaking 
of God, we should have to abandon all such expres- 
sions as He hears, He sees, He is merciful, He de- 
sires, etc., and we should have to retain merely His 
naked Being, and that would not be less disadvan- 
tageous. 


On TRADITION 


God has set aside a place in the hearts of His 
creatures for receiving the true report, and He has 
also endowed their intelligence with the faculty to 
believe in faithful traditions, and furnished them 
with the ability to carry out His commands and His 
laws, and to transmit them to others, so that His laws 
and His testimonies may be made clear to their suc- 
cessors. If human beings did not give credence to 
the truth of report and tradition, they could not look 
forward to, or expect the realization of, the good tid- 
ings announced to them, nor could they hope for, 


100 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


or believe in, what they hear of the pleasures, the 
advantages and benefits to be derived from certain 
business pursuits. They would not believe that there 
was any advantage or pleasure in any particular 
work. For such is the habit of man; he is wont to 
strive to find his maintenance, sustenance, and pleas- 
ure in his labour and business. Thus, if one does not 
conscientiously believe in the report which he has 
heard of the benefits and advantages (to be derived 
from certain work), he will not perform the work; 
nor will he be perturbed at the angry shouts or fer- 
ment of the tyrannical (to force him to do certain 
work) or at the voice of the herald, who makes proc- 
lamation and cautions him against engaging in a 
certain action, lest he be punished. And since he has 
neither fear nor hope concerning his actions in this 
world, all his action becomes stifled in the bud, and 
all counsels and plans lose their meaning. For if 
there did not exist in this world any faithful report, 
people would only ab initio receive announcements 
from their king; or fear him and his command, while 
they saw him with their own eyes. But as soon as the 
king and his command would be withdrawn from 
their sight, the fear of him would become a dead 
letter, and men would cast off his yoke, and burden 
from their shoulders; this being the case, informers, 
artifice, wisdom, counsel, hope, trust, and fear would 
all count for naught (in a commonwealth), and the 
remnant of the people would cease to exist, and. 
would perish. Furthermore, if there existed no trust- 
worthy tradition, man would not be certain of his 
own father’s dwelling or property, or of his inheri- 
tance, nay, of even his own father and mother. 
Scripture makes it clear to us that the recognition of 
a true report is like the recognition of the truth of 


FAITH AND KNOWLEDGE 101 


the knowledge acquired by observation, as it is writ- 
ten: “For pass over to the isles of Kittim, and see, 
and send to Kedar and consider diligently” (Jer. 2. 
10); otherwise since the text says, “See,” why is it 
necessary to add “Send”? Simply to emphasize, 
that the doubt arising from hearsay knowledge is 
greater than that arising from observation, and con- 
sequently the word “Hithbonenu” (“consider dili- 
gently”) is added in the case of the knowledge gained 
by hearsay. Now, having tested these two aspects in 
the crucible of the intellect, and in the refining vessel 
of wisdom, we find that the doubt arising from error 
and false judgment, which again originate from false 
tradition, exists only in the tradition handed down 
by a minority of individuals; because a few indi- 
viduals may possibly agree upon a false tradition, 
and it may appear true to them, in their desire to 
take upon themselves the yoke of such traditions, 
though erroneous. They possibly copy untrue tradi- 
tions, since they compose the minority, and it is dif- 
ficult for them to detect the one who went wrong; 
nay, it is hidden from their knowledge, and possibly 
concealed from them in the transmission of those 
traditions. But it is an absolute impossibility for 
a community of men to accept as tradition what is 
deceptive and false; moreover, it is equally impos- 
sible that the deception should escape their notice. 
Even assuming many agreed in them, and identified 
themselves in the transmission of a false report, yet 
their deception and error could not possibly be with- 
held from the multitude. But, when once the true 
report is rescued from these two corrupting causes, 
no third cause is able to injure it, and this being so, it 
is necessarily trustworthy and reliable. 


102 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


On PROPHECY AND MIRACLES 


It seems to me a true point of view that the Cre- 
ator of the universe reverses natural phenomena 
only if this supernatural transformation has been 
previously foretold and then to cause belief in 
prophecy; without such a purpose He never inter- 
feres in a natural process. For if we thought other- 
wise of the miracles of God, then the truths ascer- 
tained through miracles would turn to our disadvan- 
tage. Every one would then be anxious about his 
own existence; every one would have cause to fear 
that without purpose God would reverse conditions 
in his home, in his family; indeed, that God would 
interpose His supernatural power in every law-suit, 
in every transaction. But, as has been said, we must 
assume that the Creator alters the natural process of 
things only according to the norms mentioned above, 
where a great cause must exist. 

Many are of the opinion that we believe in Moses 
only because of the signs and wonders performed 
by him, and so we must yield faith to others who 
perform signs and wonders. We are not a little 
surprised by such an opinion. For it was not only 
the signs and wonders that led us to a belief in the 
words of Moses; we believe in him and in every 
prophet provided first that they summon us to what 
is good, and only after we have heard their words 
and seen their reasonableness do we demand signs 
and wonders. An example will make this clear. A 
and B are in court concerning a case; if the claim is 
within the realm of the possible, A claiming one— 
thousand dinars from B, then the judge will demand 
witnesses concerning the claim specified, and if it is 
proven A must pay the sum to B. On the other hand, 





FAITH AND KNOWLEDGE 103 


if the claim is outside the realm of the possible, A 
claiming from B the Tigris River as his property, then 
the claim is naturally null in advance, since the 
Tigris can be the property of no man, and the judge 
therefore need hear no testimony. Similarly with 
revelation. If the prophet says to us: Fast on such. 
or such a day, as God bids, then we demand a 
miraculous sign; and if the sign is given, we believe 
and we fast. If, however, he says to us: God com- 
mands you to wench and to steal, then we need ask 
for no signs, since He requires of us that which is 
approved neither by our reason nor by the true tra- 
dition. If one carry the point further and ask: 
What if such a prophet cared nothing about our 
asking for a sign and showed us wonders against 
our wishes? What must we then say? Our answer 
must then be that in such a case we should make the 
same reply as in a case where one, by the means of 
miracles, would endeavor to prove things that are 
against the laws of reason, e.g., that virtue is not 
good and that lying is not odious, etc. As for him 
who might then retort that virtue is good and lying 
odious not on account of our reason but on account 
of revelation, that not reason but revelation deter- 
mines us to renounce murder, wenching, etc., then, 
since he arrives at this senseless extreme, we are 
above all discussion with him. 


ON THE SOUL 


The soul is something created, and it is a pure 
essence, a substance which is bright, simple, very 
fine and pure, illuminative in a higher degree than 
the heavenly spheres and bodies generally. I arrive 
at this conclusion by the aid of two mighty and 
powerful fundamental principles. In the first place, 


104 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


reason itself proves it; because we see the signs of 
its working, and we can judge from the great wisdom 
and the breadth of counsel which it displays from 
behind the veil of the body. Further, we see that 
the body deprived of these faculties is powerless to 
produce those extraordinary manifestations, at the 
time when the soul is separated from it, and it is cast 
to the ground without wisdom and understanding. 
Hence we infer that these faculties of wisdom and 
understanding emanate from the soul, and not from 
the body; and, therefore, if the soul were merely a 
portion of the earth’s portions, it would not be able 
to effect those results, and would not be cognizant of 
the wonderful departments of knowledge. And if 
it were but part and parcel of the spheres, it could 
not be of an intellectual character, for the heavens 
have not the power of utterance, speech, or under- 
standing. The second principle upon which I found 
my conclusions is derived from the verse of Scrip- 
ture which speaks of the pure and upright soul illu- 
mining and brightening, as the light of the firma- 
ment and the stars: “And they that be wise shall 
shine as the brightness of the firmament.” (Dan. 12. 
3.) To this I add, that wicked souls shall not shine 
as the stars: “Behold he putteth no trust in his holy 
ones . . . how much less one that is abominable and 
corrupt.” (Job 15. 15, 16.) I am justified in making 
this deduction as regards the pure soul and the purity 
of heaven, for Scripture singles out for comparison 
something special in the heavens, for no other pur- 
pose than to show that the two things compared are 
one and the same in respect of their essence and 
origin, and the comparison of these two objects but 
strengthens and confirms the Wise man’s statement: 
—that “that which hath an upward tendency rises, 


FAITH AND KNOWLEDGE 105 


while that which fends downward descends.” (Cf. 
Eccles. 3. 21.) I, further, know from several con- 
siderations, that the soul gains its knowledge out of 
itself, and not by reason of the body. First, know- 
ledge and wisdom cannot possibly emanate from the 
body, because the body has not this power. Further, 
because I find that the blind man uses the expres- 
sion “Thus I saw in my dream”; and since a blind 
man does not see through the medium of any bodily 
organ or sight, he must needs do by means of some 
spiritual organ—his soul; and it is just on this ac- 
count that some ignorant folk err when they say that 
the soul is a bundle of sensations and the seat of 
the senses where they meet, mingle, and join to- 
gether. But things are not as they say, for the soul 
it is which giveth strength to the sensations and 
power to the senses, so that they be perceived, 
and it is impossible for the soul to be the power 
of sensation itself. Further I know that the soul 
can effect nothing except in conjunction with the 
body, just as it is the law of all created things that 
they can do nothing without the aid of some instru- 
ment. And it is the consequence of the soul’s con- 
junction with the body that the three faculties be- 
come possible, viz.: the faculties of desire, under- 
standing, and passion. 


On FREE WILL 


It is well known and understood by everybody 
from observation that man is himself aware of the 
fact that he has the power to speak or to remain si- 
lent, to take up a thing or to leave it alone, and no 
third power can prevent him from carrying out his 
desires; that he has, further, the power to make his 
evil inclination subservient to his superior intellect; 


106 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


wherefore, he who allows his evil inclination to get 
the better of his intelligence, renders himself like 
an Ethiopian slave, while he whose understanding 
rules his inclination is a free man. Now, by the 
light of reason, it is evident from forceful arguments 
that it is impossible for one action to be the result of 
two agents; therefore, whoever maintains that the 
Creator compels His creatures to perform His com- 
mands, i.e., to the carrying out of some action, there- 
by confesses and believes that one action has been 
brought about and performed as the result of two 
causations, viz.: that of the creature and that of the 
Creator. Moreover, if the Creator compelled His 
creatures to observe His commandments and His law, 
it would scarcely be right and reasonable to com- 
mand and admonish him, for he is compelled to per- 
form certain actions, and being under compulsion 
he would undoubtedly perform them without any 
bidding or warning, since he cannot extricate him- 
self from the jurisdiction of the One who forces him 
to do them. And if again the Creator compels His 
creatures concerning every action and every work, 
it is but right that He should reward the sinner as 
well as the righteous, and grant a goodly return to 
the skeptic as to the believer, since each one per- 
forms every action perforce. Our reason again 
makes the wise man who commands two contrary 
actions, one to build and another to destroy, in duty 
bound to reward the destroyer as well as the builder, 
since they both of them are merely carrying out his 
commands and orders, and the plea of being com- 
pelled is always received as a reasonable excuse. 
Again, it is patent to everybody that no man can de- 
tract from God’s power or weaken His might. Never- 
theless, if the skeptic should say, I have not served 


. 
7 


4 


| 


FAITH AND KNOWLEDGE 107 


my Creator, nor kept His commandments, because 
I was not able to neutralize the power of my Maker, 
which compels me to sin, it is evident that such a 
plea cannot be accepted. . . . If, again, one should 
say, “Since it is evident that He knows the future 
state of things, and that He undoubtedly knows that 
man will sin and rebel, man has not the free-will to 
keep from sinning, for if he did not commit the sin, 
the knowledge of God would thereby be nullified, and 
(to prevent this) man must necessarily commit sin,” 
we reply that the knowledge of the Creator in every 
conceivable thing is not the cause of man’s inten- 
tion, for men’s actions are not performed in conse- 
quence of the knowledge of God, in consequence of 
the fact that the Creator is cognizant of what man 
is about to do. Man does not act as a result of God’s 
foreknowledge. Moreover, it is impossible that God’s 
knowledge of our deeds is the cause of them; for if 
His knowledge of them implied the cause of them, 
everything must have existed of old, since He knew 
of them. 


ON THE EXISTENCE OF EVIL 


Although it is evidently not to the credit of the 
wise person, who has it in his power to remove it, 
to suffer anything objectionable to remain within his 
sphere, the objectionable character of the thing, how- 
ever, does not refer to Wisdom in the abstract, but 
exists solely in relation to the “man” who is wise; 
for it is man who hates and abhors that which does 
him harm, and that which destroys his work and 
causes pain to his body, whilst God does not hate 
anything for His own sake, nor on account of the 
damage or blemish it may cause Him, since it is im- 
possible for accident or damage to have any power 


108 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


or influence over Him. He has, however, placed these 
hated and abhorrent actions by our side, just be- 
cause they do us harm and injure our bodies, so that 
when we break loose from the yoke of the Unity of 
God, and do not recognize Him as it is our duty to 
do, we become foolish or stupid; and since this is so, 
it is quite possible that there may be in God’s world 
that which is hated and abhorred by Him. For this 
reason sin is made abhorrent to us, inasmuch as it 
injures our bodies, destroys our form, and causes 
our wealth and our possessions to perish. On the 
other hand, God has taught us that iniquity is loath- 
some and hateful, in order that we may keep far 
away from it. Similarly, it is said: “Do they pro- 
voke me to anger, saith the Lord? Do they not pro- 
voke themselves, to the confusion of their own 
faces?” (Jer. 7. 19.) 


On A WorLD To COME 


Since we know too well the strength of God’s 
wisdom and the might of His power, we cannot pos- 
sibly ‘believe that the pleasures and rewards ap- 
pointed for the righteous by their Creator are those 
pleasures which are met with here, for what do we 
find continually occurring in this world? Even 
pleasure is connected with ruin, all prosperity is 
mingled with sighing, the song of joy alters to the 
wail of lament, and all gladness is allied to weep- 
ing; every happiness has its appointment of vexa- 
tion, and the result of all pride is contempt; the sum 
of all joy is sorrow, and the ease of leisure ends in 
grief; nay, further, the sorrows ever outweigh the 
joys. And since the pleasures that are found with 
us are of such a sort, and we are ordered in this 
manner, they cannot be the pleasures that are to 


FAITH AND KNOWLEDGE 109 


be bestowed on the righteous, for they are varying 
and evanescent. But it is right that there should be 
a place set apart, and a world prepared, for those 
who fear the Lord, better and more beautiful than 
this world, a future world all sown with light, all 
pleasure and delight, a world of life prolonged and 
uninterrupted happiness. 

Another proof that this world’s joys are not the 
real joys. I have observed the fact that the souls 
as they now exist in this world are not at ease and 
tranquil, nor are they pleased with, nor do they de- 
sire this dwelling-place, nor do the good and great 
things which exist in it satisfy them; for they are 
constantly seeking after other things, higher in de- 
gree than those they meet with here, and when such 
a soul does attain any greatness here, it always seeks 
to rise a step higher, and to do something better. 
Hence we know that it yearns after a degree higher 
than such worldly degrees, after some great and 
mighty delights, which have nor limit nor end, and 
to which neither pain nor sorrow is joined. 

A third proof may be found in the consideration 
that while man’s inclinations desire and delight to 
do certain actions, our intelligence, on the other 
hand, and the knowledge we possess as the result of 
our understanding, regard them as the reverse of 
beautiful, nay, ugly and shameful, e.g., pride, theft, 
immorality, and the like. And it is well known that 
when a man follows the promptings of his inclina- 
tion, and acts according to his desires, he will be 
sure to regret, with amazement and remorse, having 
performed such deeds. And whence those better 
feelings of remorse, if not from the consciousness 
that there is a time and a season for the considera- 
tion of every desire, when every one will receive the 


110 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


portion of his due measure, and the lot which he 
deserves? 

I have, further, a clear conviction that God has 
stamped in the mind of man the appreciation of the 
beauty of truth and the loathsomeness of the false, 
the charm of righteousness, and the ugliness of 
falsehood, the love of what is right and the hatred 
of what is wrong; and His constant desire is to bene- 
fit the good, and to deal out to the wicked their 
deserts, to reprove those who err, and to praise them 
who do good by stealth. Now it is well known and 
evident how frequently a man whose mission it is 
to reprove the foolish has to listen in return for his 
labour to harsh words coming from them, such 
words being frequently accompanied by blows, 
which often result in a broken head. Now, knowing 
that God deals justly and righteously with all His 
creatures, it follows conclusively, by every argument 
derived from our sense of justice, that when the love 
of righteousness and the hatred of violence are im- 
planted in a man’s nature, and, in consequence of 
his desire to teach others, he suffers troubles, that 
God should pay him the reward of his work with 
a goodly recompense and portion for all the troubles 
and pain which have befallen him, this repayment 
to be made in another world, which is full of glory 
and honour. 

Another proof for the necessity of a future world: 
I have noticed in this world the doers and victims 
of violence, and the robbers and victims of theft; 
the doers of violence rejoicing, and the victims groan- 
ing, the robbers disporting themselves, the robbed 
sorrowing; yet the death of either is equal, while we 
know that God loves judgment and hates theft. It, 
therefore, follows by common-sense that their Cre- 


FAITH AND KNOWLEDGE 111 


ator will prepare for them a place of recompense for 
all their work, and of reward for all their actions. 
In it the worker of violence will have to pay the 
penalty, in proportion to the pleasure he derived in 
this world, and his victim will enjoy delight there, in 
proportion to his sorrow here. 

A further proof: we observe in this world the 
irreligious enjoying themselves while the religious 
are doomed to sighing, and the former suffer no re- 
straint whilst the latter get no support in return for 
their confessions. Does not this very matter clearly 
show that there is a time and place prepared and 
appointed, beyond the world in which we live, when 
and where every man will be paid according to the 
fruit of his actions? 

Yet another proof: We observe that whoever takes 
one life suffers one penalty of death, and he who 
takes ten lives suffers but the same penalty; simi- 
larly with the adulterer. Surely this fact teaches us 
that the true and righteous Judge has prepared an- 
other place and time, where the proper sentence will 
be carried into effect, and this is none other than 
the world to come. 


THE IMPROVEMENT OF THE MORAL QUALITIES 
By Solomon ibn Gabirol (1021-1070) 
Translated by Rabbi Stephen S. Wise 


On MAN 


Verily, when we look at man, who is the best of 
all the creatures of the Creator, exalted be His 
majesty, we recognize that he is the object aimed at 
in the creation of all substances and beings. Fur- 
thermore, he is best proportioned, as regards consti- 
tution, of all living beings; and, in addition to this, 
most perfect and beautiful of form, and most com- 
pletely fashioned. He possesses a rational soul, ele- 
mental, wise, everlasting, which does not perish with 
him. For all this are clear proofs, both intellectual 
and Scriptural, which every intelligent man knows. 
The surest proof that man is preéminent among crea- 
tures is, that he partakes of the state of the angels 
in regard to speech and understanding. These two 
are divine and spiritual properties. Nay, more, we 
see, besides this, that the angels may busy themselves 
with the righteous man, as we learn from the case 
of Abraham. 


ON THE DIFFERENCES AMONG MEN 


We know that some men may undoubtedly be 
superior to others, nay, more, that one man may be 
112 


vO 


MORAL QUALITIES 113 


equal to a large number of men—although they be 
of one form and one composition, except that the 
soul of one man is predisposed to worldly honor, 
with the help of the celestial bodies, and his pref- 
erence for ethical practice, and because the baser 
part of him is obedient to the higher, i.e., his intellect 
exercises control over his physical nature. But if his 
aim be low and his station unfit to reach that dis- 
tinction, so that he does not rise to that control of 
which the bodies in their course have not given 
promise, i.e., a sign, or to which ethics have not aided 
him, then the wise and intelligent man ought to 
expend all his efforts in order to reach the highest 
dignity which he seeks, in order that it may be as 
one of the sages said, “Help the celestial bodies with 
your souls, even as tilling and irrigating help the 
seed to grow’; and this occurs naturally through the 
instrumentality of the earth. He should endeavor 
to be one of the number of the excellent and through 
his zeal follow in their steps. Further, he must re- 
fine his qualities until they are improved and not 
employ his senses except when it appears necessary, 
until he becomes one who is honorably known and 
famed for his excellence, for that is worldly happi- 
ness. But when man reaches it, his eyes must not 
cease to gaze wistfully at the attainment of that 
which is above it, 7.e., enduring happiness which he 
can reach in the intellectual world, the world to 
come. For this is the highest gift of God to His 
servants, in addition to the favor which is their com- 
mon lot as existent creatures. 


ON THE SOUL 


The sum of the human qualities which we can 
enumerate is twenty, of which some are praisewor- 


114 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS. 


thy per se, and others blameworthy per se. Who- 
soever wishes to attain to the improvement of his 
qualities must pursue in his own person the goodly 
course so that the praiseworthy qualities come to 
be to him excellences, unto which he must accustom 
himself, from which he must not separate from the 
time of his youth, and whereunto he must apply 
himself step by step and little by little. Thus saith 
the sage (Prov. xxii. 6), “Train up a child in the 
way he should go, and when he is old he will not 
depart from it.” The philosopher hath said, “Intelli- 
gence is a gift, moral conduct is an acquirement, but 
habit is the. master over all things.” Know that all 
the qualities of man, of the possession of which he 
gives evidence at the period of his youth and man- 
hood, are in him during his infancy and boyhood; 
though it be not’in his power to manifest them, they 
are nevertheless within him in potentia, (if) not in 
actu. Thou wilt observe that in some boys the qual- 
ity of prudency manifests itself, and in others im- 
pudence; some incline to enjoyment, others to virtue, 
and still others are disposed to vices; these qualities 
above mentioned and others similar to them being 
among those of the animal soul; and when men 
reach unto the stage of maturity, the strength of the 
rational soul displays its activity and it directs him 
that possesses it to a proper understanding with re- 
gard to the improvement of the qualities, since it is 
not the practice of the animal soul to improve these. 
Now in addition to this proposition being susceptible 
of proof, it has been handed down to us by tradition 
in the words of the Saint (Prov. xx. 11), “Even a 
child is known by his doings.” As to youths whom 
baseness overcomes, it is possible to transform them 
into a noble state as long as the limits of childhood 


MORAL QUALITIES 115 


have not passed; but if they overstep the boundaries 
of youth and reach maturity, and continue to remain 
in this condition, it becomes difficult to set them 
along a good course, just as a sprig may be made to 
stand erect before it is full grown; but when it has 
become a tree, it is difficult to bend or move it. From 
this thou seest that most men when they have reached 
maturity cannot be turned aside from the course 
which in their youth they pursued, whereas most 
men can be directed between the periods of child- 
hood and youth into good habits. This is the simple 
meaning of (Prov. xxii. 6), “Train up a child in the 
way he should go, and when he is old,” etc. Thus, 
too, our Rabbis say, “At twenty years of age, one dies 
with it.” ; 

It is impossible that evil-doing should belong to 
the rational soul by nature, for this would not be in 
accordance with wisdom. The Deity hath created 
the soul pure, stainless, and simple, as saith the sage 
(Ecce. vii. 29), “This only have I found, that God 
hath made man upright.” Whatever results there- 
from that is not good is the work of the vegetative 
soul, i.e., the natural impulse. 


CLASSIFICATION OF THE MorAL QUALITIES ACCORDING 
TO THE SENSES 


Sight: Pride, Meekness, Pudency, Impudence. 

Hearing: Love, Hate, Mercy, Hard-heartedness. 

Smell: Wrath, Good-will, Jealousy, Wide-awaked- 
ness. 

Taste: Joy, Grief, Tranquillity, Penitence. 

Touch: Liberality, Niggardliness, Valor, Cow- 
ardice. 


116 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


ON THE SENSE OF SIGHT 


We hold that the first and foremost of the senses 
is that of the eye, since its position with regard to 
the body is like that of the sun to the universe. It 
is a sense which never fails to perceive an object 
without (the lapse) of time, i.e., its perception of 
that which is near to it is as quick as its perception 
of that which is far from it; nor does any time elapse | 
between its perception of the near and its perception 
of the far, as is the case with other senses. The eye 
alights upon its objects of perception as long as it is 
open. Therefore, sleep is impossible unless it is 
closed. How wondrous is the saying of a philosopher 
with regard to the sense of the eye! “The soul has 
spiritual tints, which sometimes become apparent in 
the motion of the eyelid.” Again he said, “Keep 
watch over the sense of sight: verily it may lead to 
various kinds of wrong; by some of its motions it may 
testify to your (having) pride and haughtiness, and 
by others to your possession of meekness and humil- 
ity. Therefore compel it to make the very best 
movements and restrain it from the most ignoble.” 
“Furthermore,” he said, “social intercourse does not 
exist for the pleasure of the eye, but the enjoyment 
of the mind.” The learned man will understand this 
saying. How beautiful is the agreement of this ut- 
terance with the word of God, exalted and magnified 
be He (Num. xv. 39), “Do ye not seek after your 
own heart and your own eyes?” 


On PRIDE 


When we perceive this quality beginning to affect 
the nature of a man, it becomes necessary for us to 
call his attention to serious matters, such as lead 


MORAL QUALITIES 117 


to reflection on the origin of existent things, and their 
end, i.e., the coming into being of things, their be- 
ginnings, their transitoriness, and their destruction. 
When he learns that all existent things are change- 
able, and finally that his own being will change 
(waste away) and his body become extinct, then the 
quality of his soul, which was haughty throughout 
the course of his life, will become meek and peni- 
tent at (the thought of) death. Since we are forced 
to accept this logical and traditional reasoning, it 
behooves the wise to avoid preferring this quality 
of his own free will, since it is detestable and there 
results no benefit whatever from pursuing it. On 
the contrary, it is the cause of many dangers, espe- 
cially if man’s arrogance urge him not to incline to 
the advice of any man; and although in (seeking) 
advice is the essence of good counsel, he turn away 
from it and abide by his own opinion. 


On MEEKNESS 


This quality is more nearly a virtue than that which 
was mentioned just before, because the possessor of 
this attribute, z.e., modesty and humility, withholds 
his desire from seeking gratification. When one at- 
tains this precious rank, the praiseworthy character 
in man is made perfect. 


On PUDENCY AND MODESTY 


A wise man was asked, “What is intelligence?” 
and he answered, “Modesty.” Again he was asked, 
“What is modesty?” and he replied, “Intelligence.” 
This quality, although like unto meekness and agree- 
ing therewith, is of nobler rank than the latter, for 
it is kindred to intelligence. To every man of under- 


118 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 
standing the nobility of the intellect is patent, for 
it is the dividing line between man and beast, in that 
it masters man’s natural impulses and subdues pas- 
sion. With the help of intelligence man realizes the 
benefit of knowledge and gets to understand the true 
nature of things; he comes to acknowledge the Unity 
of God, to worship his Master, and to bear a striking 
resemblance to the character of the angels. Since 
this precious quality is of so noble a kind it follows 
that modesty which resembles it is almost equally 
so. The proof of its being thus related is, that thou 
wilt never see a modest man lacking intelligence, or 
an intelligent man devoid of modesty. This being 
so, man must direct all his efforts to the attainment 
of this wonderful and highly considered quality. 

He must prefer it to all his natural impulses, and 
regard it as superior to all his other qualities, ror 
by means of it he acquires many virtues, and all vice 
becomes hidden from him. 


On IMPUDENCE 


When impudence prevails over the qualities of a 
man, he is scorned by men and not respected. He 
is not taken seriously, nor is he regarded with that 
consideration for his wisdom, even though he be 
learned, which is paid to the pudent. When this 
disposition becomes part of a man’s nature, who- 
soever is familiar with him must turn him away 
from it by rebuking him as much as he is able, and 
by annoying him, until he be rid of all that was in 
him. If the man who practises this quality be of 
a yellow (bilious) constitution, and if in the course 
of his youth he give strong evidence of its possession, 
he must oppose to it its very reverse. Let him trust 











MORAL QUALITIES 119 


in God, and he will accustom himself to avoid this 
blameworthy quality and subdue it. 


ON THE SENSE OF HEARING 


Though the effect of this sense upon the soul is 
more readily felt than that of sight, man does not 
heed it as he does the eye. Under good training, 
with reference to this sense, is included man’s re- 
fraining to listening to indecent things, and not judg- 
ing in regard to the pleasant tones which he hears 
according to their sound, but according to their mean- 
ing and intent. One ought not to be ensnared by 
what he hears, as the bird is ensnared by the sounds 
to which it inclines with admiration; and one ought 
to know of the places where it is necessary to pay 
good heed and those wherein it is not fitting to listen 
at all, as he of whom it is said (Isa. xxxili. 15), “that 
stoppeth his ears from the hearing of blood.” 


On LOVE 


This quality is preferred by foolish men only be- 
cause of the imminence (immediateness) of its de- 
light and for the sake of the amusement and the 
merriment and the hearing of mirthful songs which 
they get through it. They heed not the suffering and 
the wretchedness that follow in its train, and there- 
fore incline in accord with their natural impulses to 
the attainment of the present pleasure, as it 1s said 
(Prov. xiii. 19), “The desire accomplished is sweet 
to the soul”—turning aside from wisdom and the 
service of the Lord, because of what appears to 
be the remoteness of the delight and pleasurable- 
ness of these things. Verily, in their opinion, these 
are remote. Yet these are not remote, but near at 


120 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


hand. They are remote only in their mind. There- 
fore man must devote this quality of love to God. 
The moral application of this quality is, man 
must evince it (in his dealings) with all men. It has 
been said, “He who desires to be endeared to men 
should conduct himself with regard to them in the 
best possible manner. Benefit occasions love even as 
injury begets hatred.” Moreover, included under 
this quality are wishes and unattainable desires. It 
is right for the man of understanding that he train 
himself (to keep aloof) therefrom. 


On HATE 


Thou shouldst know that he who hates men is 
hated by them, and when this quality takes firm hold 
of the soul, it destroys it, because it leads to the 
hatred of the very food and drink with which man 
sustains life. Besides, he suffers injury through the 
hostility of men. When excessive love is expended 
on other than divine things, it is changed into the 
most violent hatred. 


On MERCY 


Since this quality is of a kind with the nature of 
the Creator, may He be greatly praised and mightily 
exalted, it is complementary to the twelve attributes 
especially characteristic of Him, it.e., the thirteen 
qualities which are ascribed to the Lord of Worlds, 
viz., “The Lord eternal is a merciful and gracious 
God,” and so forth. That which is possible for the 
wise man to aim at in action is,—being slow in anger, 
“long-suffering,” and largely generous, as it is said, 
“abundant in loving-kindness,” tolerant of sin, as it 
is said, “forgiving iniquity,” and so forth. The up- 








MORAL QUALITIES 121 


right and wise man must emulate these as far as 
he is able to do. Even as a man desires that he be 
dealt with mercifully, when compelled to seek help, 
so must he be merciful to whosoever seeks his help. 
This quality is extremely praiseworthy, and God, ex- 
alted may He be, has distinguished His righteous 
servants through their love therefor. 


On HARD-HEARTEDNESS 


Upon my soul, this is a wholly detestable quality, 
whether (its measure be) great or small. It comes 
into being when the spirit of wrath prevails over a 
man. This quality is exercised for the purpose of 
wreaking vengeance upon enemies. There is no 
harm in making use of it in this manner, although the 
intelligent man ought not endeavor to be avenged 
upon his enemies. For this is not befitting. Thus 
saith the sage (Prov. xxiv. 17), “Rejoice not when thy 
enemy falleth.” To make use of it in order that one 
may do evil to his fellow-man, to kill him, or to lay 
hold of the possessions of one who has given no of- 
fence, is reprehensible. 


ON THE SENSE OF SMELL 


The sense of smell follows the sense of hearing, 
because a sound is felt in the air; and it is of lesser 
moment than the sense of hearing. Accordingly, 
there is less need of training it, because it entails not 
(the possibility of) obedience or revolt. 


On Joy 


I hold that this quality is to be found in the souls 
of those, above all, who are free from defilement, the 
righteous, the pious, the pure, destined for the Heay- 


122 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 

enly Kingdom, rising to spirituality, z.e., the souls of 
the upright, for they are in perfect enjoyment of 
their condition of service and greatly rejoiced be- 
cause of their worship. 


On GRIEF 


Thou shouldst know that if a man be madly in 
love with this world, which is a world de generatione 
et corruptione, he never omits to seek the gratifica- 
tion of the senses, constantly moving from one thing 
to another. If he attain them and then lose them, 
gloom overcomes him. On the other hand, if he be 
made to forget this world, and apply himself to the 
world of intellect, then it becomes possible for him 
to escape the psychical ills, which are (occasioned 
by) worldly acquisitions,—that is, if he turn away 
from vain works and incline in the fullness of the 
soul to ethical science and religious laws. Therefore 
the intellectual man ought to cast away the lowly 
quality of the masses and the grandiose manner of 
kings. If it be impossible for a man to have what he 
desires, he must desire what he has. Let him not 
prefer continual gloom. We ought to strive to cure 
our souls of this evil (disease), in the same way as 
we must suffer hardships in trying to cure our bodies 
and to rid them of diseases by means of burning and 
cutting (fire and iron), and so forth. Rather must 
we gradually accustom ourselves to improve our 
souls through strength of purpose, and to endure a 
little difficulty in order that, as a result of this, we 
may pursue a praiseworthy course. We know, more- 
over, that if we represent to ourselves that no mis- 
fortune will befall us, it is as though we desired not 
to exist at all. Because misfortunes are a necessary 
condition of the passing of worldly things. 


MORAL QUALITIES 123 


On TRANQUILLITY 


This quality is commendable when a man directs 
it in faith in the Lord, and places his reliance and his 
confidence in Him. 


On PENITENCE 


This quality comes into being when a man quits a 
sinful state and repents. When he gives evidence 
of the quality of penitence then his repentance is 
complete. It must be preceded by three conditions, 
namely, penitence, seeking pardon, and guaranteeing 
to abandon one’s wonted course. 


ON THE SENSE OF TASTE 


As for taste, though it be, in degree, below the 
senses afore-mentioned, still the manner of training 
it is more important, for the body cannot exist with- 
out it, as it can exist without the others. The way 
to train it is,—keep it from that which is forbidden, 
and give it free rein with regard to that which is per- 
missible. Reason should exercise rule over desire 
in all this. The first instance wherein you can evi- 
dence your mastery over your desire is in eating and 
in drinking, just as it was in this regard that man 
first sinned. 

ON WRATH 


Wrath is a reprehensible quality, but when em- 
ployed to correct or to improve, or because of indig- 
nation at the performance of transgressions, it be- 
comes laudible. Therefore the thoroughly wise and 
ethically trained man must abandon both extremes 
and set about the right mean. We would classify 
the wrathful soul as of four kinds. He who is quickly 


124 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 

angered and (as) quickly appeased is of an even- 
balanced disposition. This is mainly characteristic 
of a man possessed of a yellow (bilious) tempera- 
ment. He who is slow to anger and difficult to ap- 
pease is likewise of an even-balanced disposition. 
But he who is difficult to appease and quickly angered 
is in a reprehensible condition because he has over- 
stepped the boundaries of moderation. But he who 
is slow to anger and quickly appeased is most praise- 
worthy. This is one of the virtues of the noble and 
excellent men, among whose qualities wrath rarely 
ever appears. Those who subdue their souls’ anger 
and prevail upon their nature to restrain it, have 
been described as noble and characterized as exalted. 


On GOOD-WILL 


This is one of the praiseworthy qualities, since it is 
rarely to be met with, except in the case of a noble- 
minded person, who accepts things just as they come 
to him and looks not for better ones. The quality of 
contentment is also derived therefrom. 


On JEALOUSY 


He whose nature is overcome by this disposition is 
blameworthy, for it leads him to envy, and a noble 
man is never found to be envious. Enviousness 
is a loathsome trait. The wise man must keep him- 
self as far from it as he can, for he gains no advan- 
tage through it; on the contrary, continued depres- 
sion and fatigue of the spirit through desires and the 
constant hatred of men, scantiness of repose, pre- 
occupation of the mind, apprehensiveness and the 
punishment of God, for transgressing that which He 
forbade in His revealed Scripture. Man must not 


MORAL QUALITIES 125 


be jealous of unrighteous men, because he sees them 
devote themselves to pleasure and (the gratifying of) 
passions. But let him employ his zeal in the service 
of God. 


On WIDE-AWAKEDNESS 


This quality appears usually when the soul is free 
from other blamable qualities and when it is not 
mingled with aught of grief, and most frequently it 
is (found) in pure and noble souls. It is a com- 
mendable quality, and man ought to make use of it 
in whatsoever work of art or science he be engrossed. 
Was it not said of him (Prov. xii. 27), “The substance 
of a wide-awake man is precious,” which means 
that the most precious virtue of the lofty is wide- 
awakedness, both in the present and future life. In 
the world de generatione et corruptione he is wide- 
awake in his quest of knowledge as well as goodness 
of service and faith, and in the attempt to attain to 
the world of intellect. 


ON THE SENSE OF ToucH 


Touch follows the sense of taste, and is very simi- 
lar to it. Its pleasures are peculiar to those members 
of the body in which the humors are well-balanced. 
There is no occasion for the reasoning soul therein, 
except to guide the body. As to the manner of ex- 
ercising it, thou must know that these desires are ills 
of the body, which thou must treat, and diseases 
which thou must heal. Do not suppose that complete 
happiness and perfect blessedness are to be attained 
thereby, as one attains to excellences, in virtue of 
which man is adjudged deserving of honor in mat- 
ters pertaining to the intellect. 


120 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


On LIBERALITY 


This quality, when it is employed with moderation 
and does not lapse into prodigality, is commendable. 
Man must prefer this quality to its antithesis, Z.e., the 
quality of niggardliness, since the great men who are 
renowned by reason of their excellences are not con- 
vinced that niggardliness is a praiseworthy quality. 

Man ought to know that if he be in a prosperous 
condition, then his generosity will not impair his 
prosperity, and if he be in a straitened condition, 
his adversity will not continue on that account. It 
is peculiar to this noble quality that he who employs 
it never feels the want of anything; on the contrary, 
his abundance is much increased. 


On NIGGARDLINESS 


Among the host of reprehensible qualities there is 
none more abominable than this. For thou seest that 
he who is lavishly bountiful of his substance, al- 
though blameworthy, is satisfied with the pleasure 
he derives and men’s goodly praise which is his. But 
niggardliness is accompanied by evil repute without 
even the attainment of pleasure; and to be of evil 
repute is not one of the qualities desired by the ex- 
cellent. The noble-minded man ought to shrink from 
this quality and not employ it on any occasion. 


On VALOR 


This quality is praiseworthy (in man), when it is 
manifested in his strength and in accordance with 
his determination to be saved from what might be- 
fall him. But when he departs from a moderate 
course and unites valor with the quality of folly and 


MORAL QUALITIES 127 


it becomes the cause of a man’s throwing himself into 
dangerous places then it is reprehensible. 


On COWARDICE 


This quality is generally found in spirits that are 
abject and downcast, poor and wretched. It is a 
reprehensible quality. Let the wise man be on his 
suard against it, let him make no use of it, exert 
himself to keep away and abstain from it, since he 
derives no benefit from it; on the contrary, he reaps 
ill-repute, a vile record, and a diminution of praise. 


On FREE-WILL 


We would say that when man pursues the right 
course in reference to these twenty qualities, 7.e., in 
the manner in which we have described the exercise 
of those that are praiseworthy, and the putting aside 
of those that are blameworthy, then God becomes 
well pleased with him, as it is said (Ps. xxxvii. 23), 
“The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord.” 
Let not man suppose that the passage “The steps of 
a good man are ordered by the Lord” implies any 
compulsion to obedience (to God) or disobedience; 
(it does point), however, to the bliss and misery 
(which are their respective reward and punishment). 
In saying “The steps of a good man are ordered by 
the Lord,” he means that God created his soul per- 
fect, not wanting in anything; and when it inclines 
to virtue, to wholesome practice and good conduct, 
the expression “are ordered” implies that he merits 
the approval of God; and this is meant by the ex- 
pression (Id. 23), “And He delighteth in His way.” 


INSTRUCTION CONCERNING THE 
DUTIES OF THE HEART 


By Bachya ibn Pakudah (fl. Eleventh Century) 


ON THE TRIALS OF THE RIGHTEOUS 


The causes whence the trials and troubles of 
the righteous in this world proceed are as follows :— 
Either on account of sin or iniquity, God exacting 
punishment from them in this world, as we find: 
“Behold the righteous shall be recompensed in the 
earth” (Prov. 11. 31); or it is in order to increase 
their reward in the future world, as it is said: “To 
do thee good at thy latter end” (Deut. 8. 16). The 
object may further be, to declare the righteous man- 
ner in which such a one endures the service of his 
Creator. Or maybe the punishment has been sent 
owing to the sin and transgression of his generation, 
according to the text: “Surely he has borne our 
griefs.” (Is. 53. 4). Further, an otherwise righteous 
person may have had the power of preventing the 
wickedness of his contemporaries, but he neglected 
this duty of restraining them, as is mentioned in the 
case of Eli, who did not restrain his sons. 

128 


DUTIES OF THE HEART 129 


ON THE GOODNESS OF MAN AND THE GOODNESS OF GOD 


All the good deeds which men manifest to each 
other are based on egoism: either to win for them- 
selves a temporary or eternal honor, or to avert pain 
from themselves, or to improve their property. 
Nevertheless, none will refuse them praise, gratitude, 
honor and love, although their goodness is merely 
(like) a loan and they are constrained to beneficence, 
their goodness not being permanent or their love en- 
during, whilst their liberality has for its purpose 
either their own advantage or the removal of a dis- 
advantage. To what extent then does man owe de- 
votion, praise and gratitude to his Creator, whose 
goodness is exercised towards man without bound, 
enduringly, everlastingly, without self-interest, only 
from grace and love! 


ON THE PROPER SUBJECTS OF STUDY 


Although it is incumbent upon us to investigate and 
study the whole universe so as to understand the 
wisdom and goodness of the Creator, the subject 
most necessary to study, as well as the nearest and 
most obvious, is the evidence of the divine wisdom 
in all that concerns the human species. For man is 
the universe in little and the proximate cause of the 
existence of the great world. And it is our duty to 
study the origin of man and his history; his birth, 
and the composition and structure of his component 
parts, their relations to each other, and the functions 
and purposes of every one of them; and the neces- 
sity of his being made as he is, in structure, form, and 
appearance. And then we must consider the ob- 
jects of his being and all his mental qualities and 
characteristics, and the powers of his soul, and the 


130 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


light of his reason, and all the essentials and acci- 
dentals of his being, and his relation to the scheme of 
creation. 

From the standpoint of this study much of the 
mystery of the universe, and many of the secrets of 
this world, will become clear to us, because of the 
likeness of men to the world; and it has been said 
by some of the wise men that Philosophy is man’s 
knowledge of himself; that is to say: such knowledge 
of man will enable us to recognize the Creator from 
the signs of His wisdom displayed in man. This is 
the meaning of what Job said: “And from my flesh 
I shall see God.” 


On REPENTANCE 


Repentance is of three kinds. 

First, that of him who repents because he is out 
of the way of sin and temptation; but as soon as he 
is in the way of temptation his inclination prevails 
over his reason, and he does not refrain from sin, 
and only then, when he has finished his sinful action, 
sees the shameful nature of his conduct, and regrets 
his transgression. Such a one has repented with his 
lips and not with his heart; with his tongue and not 
with his deeds; and deserves the condemnation of 
the Creator; and of him it is written (Jer. 7. 9), 
“Will ye steal and murder and commit adultery and 
swear falsely, etc. Is this house which is called by 
My name become a den of robbers in your eyes?” 

The second kind of repentance is that of him who 
repents in his heart and in his physical and ma- 
terial conduct, and makes a firm stand with his 
reason against his passions, and so orders his con- 
duct and his habits of life as to compel his soul to 
fight with her desires until he is victorious and he is 


DUTIES OF THE HEART 131 


able to refrain from what is hateful to his Creator; 
but his soul still has pleasure in turning continually 
towards what is contrary to the service of the Creator, 
and thirsts after transgression, and he strives earn- 
estly to subdue his soul and his passions; and some- 
times he prevails and sometimes they. Such a man 
is not perfect in his repentance, and the duty of mak- 
ing atonement is still incumbent upon him until he 
shall depart altogether from his transgressions. 
The third kind of repentance is when a man fulfills 
all the conditions of repentance and causes his in- 
tellect to prevail over his desires, and accustoms him- 
self continually to enter into reckoning with his soul, 
and fears his Creator, and is ashamed before Him, 
and lays to heart the greatness of his sins, and fully 
recognizes the greatness of Him against whom he has 
sinned and whose words he has transgressed, and 
sets his iniquities before his eyes, and is continually 
full of remorse for them, and seeks forgiveness for 
them all the days of his life, until its end. Such a 
one is, in the sight of the Creator, fit to be saved. 


On SELF-COMMUNION 


A man should commune with himself in reference 
to the desires of his heart and his worldly tastes; and 
a careful consideration of the ends they serve will 
lead him to look with contempt on ephemeral pos- 
sessions; and his thoughts and desires will be fixed 
on the highest good, and on what is of eternal value 
to his mind and soul; and he will learn to strive only 
for what is barely necessary of the things of this 
world. He will desire to be kept from both poverty 
and riches, so that he may have enough for a simple, 
healthy life; and he will yearn after wisdom and 
spiritual possessions, of which no one can rob him. 


132 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


Another subject for self-communing is the ques- 
tion whether we have made proper provision for the 
journey we must one day make, to another world, 
just as a traveler does not wait till he is on a journey 
before making provision for his necessities while 
travelling. 

Another subject that should not be neglected, in 
the communing with one’s own soul, is the inclina- 
tion of the soul to seek the fellowship of the sons of 
men and the advantages of solitude and of separa- 
tion from men, and the evil of associating ourselves 
with their follies when we are not forced to do so. 
Too much talking is calculated to lead to the talk- 
ing of slander and the telling of lies, and even to 
the taking of false oaths. One of the Chassideem 
said to his disciples: “The Torah permits our swear- 
ing by the name of the Creator to what is true, but 
I counsel you not to take an oath by the holy name 
of God, whether to the truth or to a he. Say simply 
‘Yes,’ or ‘No.’” Too much social intercourse also 
leads to boasting and displaying one’s knowledge. 

The pure of heart will always love solitude. But 
here again temptation to complete solitude must be 
guarded against. For the society of philosophers, of 
the pious, and of great men is of great advantage. 

One should also consider well, in communing with 
his soul, whether he has made the best use of any 
wealth that he may possess, doing good with it. And 
he should meditate also on the many ways in which 
one man can help another; and consider that he 
should love for others what he loves for himself, and 
hate for others what he hates for himself, rejoicing 
in their joy and grieving at their sorrow. And he 
should be full of compassion for them, and ward off 
from them, to the utmost of his power, anything that 


DUTIES OF THE HEART 133 


may injure them; as it is said (Levit. xix), “And thou 
shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.” 


THE Passing Day Hoxtps LASTING Goop 


Awake, my brother, and delay not to cure thyself 
of the disease of pride and arrogance, nor be pre- 
vented therefrom because thou seest others delay to 
cure themselves, nor say, “Let happen to me what 
happens to them.” For it is not probable that a 
blind person will delay to avail himself of the reme- 
dies which are at hand and say, “Let happen to me 
what happens to my companions in blindness.” 
Therefore look to thyself and exert all thy strength; 
nor reject what may avail thee both in this world and 
the world to come, lest thou die without having at- 
tained the precious benefits within thy reach; as The 
Wise One said (Prov. xxi. 25): The desire of the 
slothful killeth him. And again (Prov. xxiv. 30), I 
went by the field of the slothful and by the vineyard 
of the man void of understanding, and lo! it was all 
grown over with thorns, and nettles had covered the 
face thereof, and the stone wall thereof was broken 
down. May God in His mercy show thee and me the 
right path to serve Him! Amen. 


DUTIES OF THE HEART 


As is well known to all, our duties towards God are 
of two kinds: those which we perform with our body 
and are visible, and those which appertain to the 
heart and are invisible. I have inquired diligently 
to know what is their mutual relation, and to that 
end consulted the three sources of our faith, viz.: 
Reason, Revelation, and Tradition, and I have found 
all three to agree in the conclusion that the duties 


134 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


of the heart are the foundation of those of the body, 
so that the latter lose all religious meaning if the 
heart and the mind of the doer have no part in them. 
Prayer, Fasting, Almsgiving, Study of the Law, 
Tabernacles, M’susah, in fact the whole body of 
Rituals and Ceremonials is vain, if not done with the 
whole being of the observer, that is to say, with the 
body and the soul; for without the inward desire to 
approach to God and become united with Him, the 
Rituals differ in nothing from our ordinary actions. 
In view of this conclusion I resolved to compose 
these treatises, in which I shall show: How our 
thoughts should conform to our doctrine of the Unity 
of God; how to trace the goodness of His Providence; 
how to fulfill the duty of His service, how to prove 
our trust in Him; how to make the glory of His name 
the chief motive of our actions; how to keep our 
souls humble and meek before Him; how to repent 
for our sins so as to find forgiveness from Him; how 
to practice continual self-examination; how to find 
the true limits of our separation from the world; and 
how to reach the highest of all duties—Love of God 
with all our heart, and all our soul, and all our might. 
—From the Preface to the Work “On the Duties of 
the Heart.” 


THE SAFETY oF HUMILITY 


He that is humble-minded hastens to serve God, 
but he never boasts of it; neither does he despise the 
least part of what appertains to God’s service, whilst 
the proud one delays his religious duties. Be, there- 
fore, mindful thou place humility before thine eyes; 
strive continually to acquire it, implore God’s help 
thereto, and beg Him to lead thee to it in order to 
perform His will, and He will set thee in the right 


DUTIES OF THE HEART 135 


path thereto, and make thy way plain before thee, 
as we Israelites are praying daily: “O my God, 
guard my tongue from evil, and my lips from speak- 
ing guile; and to such as curse me, let my soul be 
dumb, yea, let my soul be unto all as dust.” Beware 
of the thoughts of thy heart and of the temptations 
into which arrogance and ambition may lead thee. 
God has, in His Word, shown us the way to this 
grace in the prayer: Two things have I required of 
Thee, O God. Remove far from me vanity and lies 
. . . lest Ibe full and deny Thee and say: who is the 
Lord? or lest I steal or take the name of God in vain. 
BacHYA IB’N PAkupDAH, XI Century. 


THE WISDOM OF MAIMONIDES, 1135 A.D. 
From the Guide to the Perplexed 


ON COURAGE 


Every man possesses a certain amount of courage, 
otherwise he would not stir to remove anything that 
might injure him. This psychical force seems to me 
analogous to the physical force of repulsion. Energy 
varies like all other forces, being great in one case 
and small in another. There are, therefore, people 
who attack a lion, whilst others run away at the sight 
of a mouse. One attacks a whole army and fights, 
another is frightened and terrified by the threat of 
a woman. This courage requires that there be in a 
man’s constitution a certain disposition for it. If 
man, in accordance with a certain view, employs it 
more frequently, it develops and increases, but, on 
the other hand, if it is employed, in accordance with 
the opposite view, more rarely it will diminish. 
From our own youth we remember that there are 
different degrees of energy among boys. 

The same is the case with the intuitive faculty; 
all possess it, but in different degrees. Man’s intui- 
tive power is especially strong in things which he has 
well comprehended, and in which his mind is much 
engaged. Thus you may yourself guess correctly that . 
a certain person said or did a certain thing in a cer- 
tain matter. Some persons are so strong and sound 
in their imagination and intuitive faculty that, when 

136 





MOSES MAIMONIDES 


Born in Cordova, 1135—Died 1204 


Noted Hebrew Thinker Regarded in His Day as 
the “Plato of the Jews” 





WISDOM OF MAIMONIDES 137 


they assume a thing to be in existence, the reality 
either entirely or partly confirms their assumption. 
Although the causes of this assumption are numerous, 
and include many preceding, succeeding, and pres- 
ent circumstances, by means of the intuitive faculty 
the intellect can pass over all these causes, and draw 
inferences from them very quickly, almost instan- 
taneously. This same faculty enables some persons 
to foretell important coming events. The prophets 
must have had these two forces, courage and intui- 
tion, highly developed, and these were still more 
strengthened when they were under the influence of 
the Active Intellect. Their courage was so great that, 
e.g.. Moses with only a staff in his hand dared to 
address a great king in his desire to deliver a nation 
from his service. He was not frightened or terrified, 
because he had been told, “I will be with thee” 
(Exod. iii. 12). The prophets have not all the same 
degree of courage, but none of them has been en- 
tirely without it. Thus Jeremiah is told: “Be not 
afraid of them,” ete. (Jer. i. 8), and Ezekiel is ex- 
horted, “Do not fear them or their word” (Ezek. ii. 
6). In the same manner you find that all prophets 
possessed great courage. Again, through the ex- 
cellence of their intuitive faculty, they could quickly 
foretell the future, but this excellence, as is well 
known, likewise admits of different degrees. 

The true prophets undoubtedly conceive ideas that 
result from premises which human reason could not 
comprehend by itself; thus they tell things which 
men could not tell by reason and ordinary imagina- 
tion alone; for (the action of the prophets’ mental 
capacities is influenced by) the same agent that 
causes the perfection of the imaginative faculty, and 
that enables the prophet thereby to foretell a future 


138 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


event with such clearness as if it was a thing already 
perceived with the senses, and only through them 
conveyed to his imagination. This agent perfects the 
prophet’s mind, and influences it in such a manner 
that he conceived ideas which are confirmed by 
reality, and are so clear to him as if he deduced 
them by means of syllogisms. 

This should be the belief of all who choose to ac- 
cept the truth. For (all things are in a certain 
relation to each other, and) what is noticed in one 
thing may be used as evidence for the existence of 
certain properties in another, and the knowledge of 
one thing leads us to the knowledge of other things. 
But (what we said of the extraordinary powers of 
our imaginative faculty) applies with special force 
to our intellect, which is directly influenced by the 
Active Intellect, and caused by it to pass from poten- 
tiality to actuality. It is through the intellect that 
the influence reaches the imaginative faculty. How 
then could the latter be so perfect as to be able to 
represent things not previously perceived by the 
senses, if the same degree of perfection were with- 
held from the intellect, and the latter could not com- 
prehend things otherwise than in the usual manner, 
namely, by means of premise, conclusion, and in- 
ference? This is the true characteristic of prophecy 
and of the disciplines to which the preparation for 
prophecy must exclusively be devoted. I spoke here 
of true prophets in order to exclude the third class, 
namely, those persons whose logical faculties are 
not fully developed, and who do not possess any 
wisdom, but are only endowed with imaginative and 
inventive powers. It may be that things perceived 
by these persons are nothing but ideas which they 
had before, and of which impressions were left in 


WISDOM OF MAIMONIDES 139 


their imaginations together with those of other 
things; but whilst the impressions of other images 
are effaced and have disappeared, certain images 
alone remain, are seen and considered as new and 
objective, coming from without. The process is 
analogous to the following case: A person has with 
him in the house a thousand living individuals; all 
except one of them leave the house; when the person 
finds himself alone with that individual, he imagines 
that the latter has entered the house now, contrary 
to the fact that he has only not left the house. This 
is one of the many phenomena open to gross mis- 
interpretations and dangerous errors, and many of 
those who believed that they were wise perished 
thereby. 

There were, therefore, men who supported their 
opinion by a dream which they had, thinking that 
the vision during sleep was independent of what 
they had previously believed or heard when awake. 
Persons whose mental capacities are not fully de- 
veloped, and who have not attained intellectual per- 
fection, must not take any notice of these (dreams). 
Those who reach that perfection may, through the 
influence of the divine intellect, obtain knowledge 
independent of that possessed by them when awake. 
They are true prophets, as is distinctly stated in 
Scripture, ve-nabi lebab hokmah (Ps. xc. 12), “And 
the true prophet possesseth a heart of wisdom.” 
This must likewise be noticed. 

There is a great difference between the knowledge 
which the producer of a thing possesses concerning 
it, and the knowledge which other persons possess 
concerning the same thing. Suppose a thing is pro- 
duced in accordance with the knowledge of the pro- 
ducer, the producer was then guided by his knowl- 


140 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


edge in the act of producing the thing. Other people, 
however, who examine this work and acquire a 
knowledge of the whole of it, depend for that knowl- 
edge on the work itself. E£.g., an artisan makes a 
box in which weights move with the running of the 
water, and thus indicate how many hours have 
passed of the day and of the night. The whole quan- 
tity of the water that is to run out, the different ways 
in which it runs, every thread that is drawn, and 
every little ball that descends—all this is fully per- 
ceived by him who makes the clock; and his 
knowledge is not the result of observing the move- 
ments as they are actually going on; but, on the 
contrary, the movements are produced in accordance 
with his knowledge. But another person who looks 
at that instrument will receive fresh knowledge at 
every movement he perceives; the longer he looks 
on, the more knowledge does he acquire; he will 
gradually increase his knowledge till he fully under- 
stands the machinery. If an infinite number of move- 
ments were assumed for this instrument, he would 
never be able to complete his knowledge. Besides, 
he cannot know any of the movements before they 
take place, since he only knows them from their 
actual occurrence. The same is the case with every 
object, and its relation to our knowledge and God’s 
knowledge of it. Whatever we know of the things. 
is derived from observation; on that account it is 
impossible for us to know that which will take place 
in future, or that which is infinite. 

Our knowledge is acquired and increased in pro- 
portion to the things known by us. This is not the 
case with God. His knowledge of things is not de- 
rived from the things themselves; if this were the 
case, there would be change and plurality in His 


WISDOM OF MAIMONIDES 141 
knowledge; on the contrary, the things are in ac- 
cordance with His eternal knowledge, which has 
established their actual properties, and made part 
of them purely spiritual, another part material and 
constant as regards its individual members, a third 
part material and changeable as regards the indi- 
vidual beings according to eternal and constant 
laws. Plurality, acquisition, and change in His 
knowledge is therefore impossible. He fully knows 
His unchangeable essence, and has thus a knowledge 
of all that results from any of His acts. If we were 
to try to understand in what manner this is done, 
it would be the same as if we tried to be the same 
as God, and to make our knowledge identical with 
His knowledge. Those who seek the truth, and admit 
what is true, must believe that nothing is hidden 
from God; that everything is revealed to His knowl- 
edge, which is identical with His essence; that this 
kind of knowledge cannot be comprehended by us; 
for if we knew its method, we would possess that 
intellect by which such knowledge could be ac- 
quired. Such intellect does not exist except in God, 
and is at the same time His essence. Note this well, 
for I think that this is an excellent idea, and leads 
to correct views; no error will be found in it; no 
dialectical argument; it does not lead to any absurd 
conclusion, nor to ascribing any defect to God. These 
sublime and profound themes admit of no proof 
whatever, neither according to our opinion who be- 
lieve in the teaching of Scripture, nor according to 
the philosophers who disagree and are much di- 
vided on this question. In all questions that cannot 
be demonstrated, we must adopt the method which 
we have adopted in this question about God’s 
Omniscience. Note it. 


142 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


On Law 
From the Guide to the Perplexed 


There are persons who find it difficult to give a 
reason for any of the commandments, and consider 
it right to assume that the commandments and pro- 
hibitions have no rational basis whatever. They are 
led to adopt this theory by a certain disease in their 
soul, the existence of which they perceive, but which 
they are unable to discuss or to describe. For they 
imagine that these precepts, if they were useful in 
any respect, and were commanded because of their 
usefulness, would seem to originate in the thought 
and reason of some intelligent being. But as things 
which are not objects of treason and serve no pur- 
pose, they would undoubtedly be attributed to God, 
because no thought of man could have produced 
them. According to the theory of those weak-minded 
persons, man is more perfect than his Creator. For 
what man says or does has a certain object, whilst 
the actions of God are different; He commands us 
to do what is of no use to us, and forbids us to do 
what is harmless. Far be this! On the contrary, 
the sole object of the Law is to benefit us. Thus we 
explained the Scriptural passage, “for our good al- 
ways, that He might preserve us alive, as it is this 
day” (Deut. vi. 24). Again, “which shall hear all. 
those statutes (hukkim), and say, surely this great 
nation is a wise and understanding people” (ibid. 
iv. 6). He thus says that even every one of these 
“statutes” convinces all nations of the wisdom and 
understanding it includes. But if no reason could 
be found for these statutes, if they produced no ad- 
vantage and removed no evil, why then should he 
who believes in them and follows them be wise, 


WISDOM OF MAIMONIDES 143 


reasonable, and so excellent as to raise the admira- 
tion of all nations? But the truth is undoubtedly 
as we have said, that every one of the six hundred 
and thirteen precepts serves to inculcate some truth, 
to remove some erroneous opinion, to establish 
proper relations in society, to diminish evil, to train 
in good manners, or to warn against bad habits. All 
this depends on three things: opinions, morals, and 
social conduct. We do not count words, because pre- 
cepts, whether positive or negative, if they relate to 
speech, belong to those precepts which regulate our 
social conduct, or to those which spread truth, or to 
those which teach morals. Thus these three prin- 
ciples suffice for assigning a reason for every one of 
the Divine commandments. 


On WISDOM 


The term hokmah (“wisdom”) in Hebrew is used 
of four different things: (1) It denotes the knowledge 
of those truths which lead to the knowledge of God. 
Comp. “But where shall wisdom be found?” (Job 
xxvili. 12); “If thou seekest her like silver” (Prov. 
ii. 4). The word occurs frequently in this sense. 
(2) The expression hokmah denotes also knowledge 
of any workmanship. Comp. “And every wise- 
hearted among you shall come and make all that 
the Lord hath commanded” (Exod. xxxv. 10); “And 
all the women that were wise-hearted did spin” 
(ibid. ver. 25). (3) It is also used of the acquisition 
of moral principles. Comp. “And teach his senators 
wisdom” (Ps. cv. 22); “With the ancient is wisdom” 
(Job xii. 12); for it is chiefly the disposition for ac- 
quiring moral principles that is developed by old 
age alone. (4) It implies, lastly, the notion of cun- 
ning and subtlety. Comp. “Come on, let us deal 


144 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


wisely with them” (Exod. i. 10). In the same sense 
the term is used in the following passages: “And 
fetched thence a wise woman” (2 Sam. xiv. 2); “They 
are wise to do evil” (Jer. iv. 22). It is possible that 
the Hebrew hokmah (“wisdom”) expresses the idea 
of cunning and planning, which may serve in one 
case as a means of acquiring intellectual perfection, 
or good moral principles; but may in another case 
produce skill in workmanship, or even be employed 
in establishing bad opinions and principles. The 
attribute hakam (“wise”) is therefore given to a 
person that possesses great intellectual faculties, or 
good moral principles, or skill in art; but also to 
persons cunning in evil deeds and principles. 
According to this explanation, a person that has 
a true knowledge of the whole Law is called wise 
in a double sense; he is wise because the Law in- 
structs him in the highest truths, and secondly, 
because it teaches him good morals. But as the 
truths contained in the Law are taught by way of 
tradition, not by a philosophical method, the knowl- 
edge of the Law, and the acquisition of true wisdom, 
are treated in the books of the Prophets and in the 
words of our Sages as two different things; real 
wisdom demonstrates by proof those truths which 
Scripture teaches us by way of tradition. It is to 
this kind of wisdom, which proves the truth of the 
Law, that Scripture refers when it extols wisdom, 
and speaks of the high value of this perfection, and 
of the consequent paucity of men capable of acquir- 
ing it, in sayings like these: “Not many are wise” 
(Job xxxii. 9); “But where shall wisdom be found?” 
(ibid. xxvili. 12). In the writings of our sages we 
notice likewise many passages in which distinction 
is made between knowledge of the Law and wisdom. 


WISDOM OF MAIMONIDES 145 
They say of Moses, our Teacher, that he was Father 
in the knowledge of the Law, in wisdom and in 
prophecy. When Scripture says of Solomon, “And 
he was wiser than all men” (1 Kings y. 11), our 
sages add, “but not greater than Moses”; and the 
phrase “than all men” is explained to mean “than 
all men of his generation”; for this reason (only) 
“Heman, Chalcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol,” 
the renowned wise men of that time, are named. 
Our sages further say that man has first to render 
account concerning his knowledge of the Law, then 
concerning the acquisition of wisdom, and at last 
concerning the lessons derived by logical conclusions 
from the Law, i.e., the lessons concerning his actions. 
This is also the right order: we must first learn the 
truths by tradition, after this we must be taught how 
to prove them, and then investigate the actions that 
help to improve man’s ways. The idea that man will 
have to render account concerning these three things 
in the order described is expressed by our sages in 
the following passage: “When man comes to the 
trial, he is first asked, ‘Hast thou fixed certain sea- 
sons for the study of the Law? Hast thou been en- 
gaged in the acquisition of wisdom? Hast thou 
derived from one thing another thing?’” This 
proves that our sages distinguished between the 
knowledge of the Law on the one hand, and wisdom 
on the other, as the means of proving the lessons 
taught in the Law by correct reasoning. 

Hear now what I have to say after having given 
the above explanation. The ancient and the modern 
philosophers have shown that man can acquire four 
kinds of perfection. The first kind, the lowest, in 
the acquisition of which people spend their days, is 
perfection as regards property; the possession of 


146 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 
money, garments, furniture, servants, land, and the 
like; the possession of the title of a great king belongs 
to this class. There is no close connection between 
this possession and its possessor; it is a perfectly 
imaginary relation when on account of the great 
advantage a person derives from these possessions, 
he says, This is my house, this is my servant, this is 
my money, and these are my hosts and armies. For 
when he examines himself he will find that all these 
things are external, and their qualities are entirely 
independent of the possessor. When, therefore, that 
relation ceases, he that has been a great king may 
one morning find that there is no difference between 
him and the lowest person, and yet no change has 
taken place in the things which were ascribed to him. 
The philosophers have shown that he whose sole aim 
in all his exertions and endeavors is the possession of 
this kind of perfection, only seeks perfectly im- 
aginary and transient things; and even if these 
remain his property all his lifetime, they do not give 
him any perfection. 

The second kind is more closely related to man’s 
body than the first. It includes the perfection of the 
shape, constitution, and form of man’s body; the 
utmost evenness of temperament, and the proper 
order and strength of his limbs. This kind of per- 
fection must likewise be excluded from forming our 
chief aim; because it is a perfection of the body, and 
man does not possess it as man, but as a living being; 
he has this property besides in common with the 
lowest animal; and even if a person possesses the 
greatest possible strength, he could not be as strong 
as a mule, much less can he be as strong as a lion 
or an elephant; he, therefore, can at the utmost have 
strength that might enable him to carry a heavy 


WISDOM OF MAIMONIDES 147 


burden, or break a thick substance, or do similar 
things, in which there is no great profit for the body. 
The soul derives no profit whatever from this kind of 
perfection. 

The third kind of perfection is more closely con- 
nected with man himself than the second perfec- 
tion. It includes moral perfection, the highest degree 
of excellency in man’s character. Most of the pre- 
cepts aim at producing this perfection; but even this 
kind is only a preparation for another perfection, 
and is not sought for its own sake. For all moral 
principles concern the relation of man to his neigh- 
bor; the perfection of man’s moral principles is, 
as it were, given to man for the benefit of mankind. 
Imagine a person being alone, and having no con- 
nection whatever with any other person, all his good 
moral principles are at rest, they are not required, 
and give man no perfection whatever. These prin- 
ciples are only necessary and useful when man comes 
in contact with others. 

The fourth kind of perfection is the true perfec- 
tion of man; the possession of the highest intellectual 
faculties; the possession of such notions which lead 
to true metaphysical opinions as regards God. With 
this perfection man has obtained his final object; 
it gives him true human perfection; it remains to 
him alone; it gives him immortality, and on its ac- 
count he is called man. Examine the first three kinds 
of perfection; you will find that, if you possess them, 
they are not your property, but the property of 
others; according to the ordinary view, however, 
they belong to you and to others. But the last kind 
of perfection is exclusively yours; no one else owns 
any part of it, “They shall be only thine own, and 
not strangers with thee” (Prov. v. 17). Your aim 


148 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


must therefore be to attain this (fourth) perfection 
that is exclusively yours, and you ought not to con- 
tinue to work and weary yourself for that which 
belongs to others, whilst neglecting your soul till it 
has lost entirely its original purity through the do- 
minion of the bodily powers over it. The same idea 
is expressed in the beginning of those poems which 
allegorically represent the state of our soul. “My 
mother’s children were angry with me; they made 
me the keeper of the vineyards; but mine own vine- 
yard have I not kept” (Song i. 6). Also the follow- 
ing passage refers to the same subject, “Lest thou 
give thine honor unto others, and thy years unto the 
cruel” (Prov. v. 9). 

The prophets have likewise explained unto us 
these things, and have expressed the same opinion 
on them as the philosophers. They say distinctly 
that perfection in property, in health, or in character 
is not a perfection worthy to be sought as a cause 
of pride and glory for us; that the knowledge of 
God, i.e., true wisdom, is the only perfection which 
we should seek, and in which we should glorify our- 
selves. Jeremiah, referring to these four kinds of 
perfection, says: “Thus saith the Lord, Let not the 
wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty 
man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory 
in his riches; but let him that glorieth glory in this, 
that he understandeth and knoweth me” (Jer. ix. 
22, 23). See how the prophet arranged them accord- 
ing to their estimation in the eyes of the multitude. 
The rich man occupies the first rank; next is the 
mighty man; and then the wise man; that is, the man 
of good moral principles; for in the eyes of the 
multitude, who are addressed in these words, he is 


WISDOM OF MAIMONIDES 149 


likewise a great man. This is the reason why the 
three classes are enumerated in this order. 

Our sages have likewise derived from this pas- 
sage the above-mentioned lessons, and stated the 
same theory that has been explained in this chapter, 
viz., that the simple term hokmah, as a rule, denotes 
the highest aim of man, the knowledge of God; that 
those properties which man acquires, makes his pe- 
culiar treasure, and considers as his perfection, in 
reality do not include any perfection; and that the 
religious acts prescribed in the Law, viz., the various 
kinds of worship and the moral principles which 
benefit all people in their social intercourse with 
each other, do not constitute the ultimate aim of 
man, nor can they be compared to it, for they are 
but preparations leading to it. Hear the opinion of. 
our sages on this subject in their own words. The 
passage occurs in Bereshit Rabba, and runs thus, 
“In one place Scripture says, ‘And all things that 
are desirable (hafazim) are not to be compared to 
her’ (Prov. viii. 11); and in another place, ‘And all 
things that thou desirest (hafazeha) are not to be 
compared unto her’” (ibid. iii. 15). By “things that 
are desirable” the performance of Divine precepts 
and good deeds is to be understood, whilst “things 
that thou desirest” refer to precious stones and 
pearls. Both—things that are desirable and things 
that thou desirest—cannot be compared to wisdom, 
but “in this let him that glorieth glory, that he under- 
standeth and knoweth me.” Consider how concise 
this saying is, and how perfect its author; how noth- 
ing is here omitted of all that we have put forth after 
lengthy explanations and preliminary remarks. 

Having stated the sublime ideas contained in that 


iO THE WISDOM OF THECHEBREWS 


Scriptural passage, and quoted the explanation of 
our sages, we will now complete what the remainder 
of that passage teaches us. The prophet does not 
content himself with explaining that the knowledge 
of God is the highest kind of perfection; for if this 
only had been his intention, he would have said, “But 
in this let him who glorieth glory, that he under- 
standeth and knoweth me,” and would have stopped 
there; or he would have said, “that he understandeth 
and knoweth me that I am One,” or “that I have not 
any likeness,” or, “that there is none like me,” or a 
similar phrase. He says, however, that man can only 
glory in the knowledge of God and in the knowledge 
of His ways and attributes, which are His actions, 
as we have shown (Part I. liv.) in expounding the 
passage “Show me now thy ways” (Exod. xxxviii. 
13). We are thus told in this passage that the Divine 
acts which ought to be known, and ought to serve 
as a guide for our actions, are, hesed, “loving-kind- 
ness, mishpat, “judgment,” and zedakah, “righteous- 
ness.” Another very important lesson is taught by 
the additional phrase, “in the earth.” It implies a 
fundamental principle of the Law; it rejects the 
theory of those who boldly assert that God’s provi- 
dence does not extend below the sphere of the moon, 
and that the earth with its contents is abandoned, 
that “the Lord hath forsaken the earth” (Ex. viii. 
12). It teaches, as has been taught by the greatest 
of all-wise men in the words, “The earth is the 
Lord’s” (Exod. ix. 29), that His providence extends to 
the earth in accordance with its nature, in the same 
manner as it controls the heavens in accordance with 
their nature. This is expressed in the words, “That 
I am the Lord which exercise loving-kindness, judg- 
ment, and righteousness in the earth.” The prophet 


WISDOM OF MAIMONIDES yo 


thus, in conclusion, says, “For in these things | de- 
light, saith the Lord,” i.e., My object (in saying this) 
is that you shall practice loving-kindness, judgment, 
and righteousness in the earth. In a similar manner 
we have shown (Part I. liv.) that the object of the 
enumeration of God’s thirteen attributes is the les- 
son that we should acquire similar attributes and 
act accordingly. The object of the above passage is 
therefore to declare that the perfection, in which 
man can truly glory, is attained by him when he has 
acquired—as far as this is possible for man—the 
knowledge of God, the knowledge of His providence, 
and of the manner in which it influences His crea- 
tures in their production and continued existence. 
Having acquired this knowledge he will then be de- 
termined always to seek loving-kindness, judgment, 
and righteousness, and thus to imitate the ways of 
God. We have explained this many times in this 
treatise. 

This is all that I thought proper to discuss in this 
treatise, and which I considered useful for men like 
you. I hope that, by the help of God, you will, after 
due reflection, comprehend all the things which I 
have treated here. May He grant us and all Israel 
with us to attain what He promised us, “Then the 
eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the 
deaf shall be unstopped” (Isa. xxxv. 5); “The people 
that walked in darkness have seen a great light; they 
that dwell in the shadow of death upon them hath 
the light shined” (ibid. ix. 1). 

God is near to all who call Him, if they call Him 
in truth, and turn to Him. He is found by every one 
who seeks Him, if he always goes towards Him, and 
never goes astray. Amen. 


152 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


CONTROL AND CLEANLINESS 


One of the objects of the perfect Law is to make a 
man reject, disregard, and reduce his desires as much 
as possible. For it is well known that intemperate 
indulgence of our appetites hinders the ulterior per- 
fection of man, impedes his development, disturbs 
the social order of the country, and the economy of 
the family; it causes an increase of envy, hatred, and 
warfare. God in His wisdom has therefore given 
us such commandments as would counteract exces- 
sive desires and lustings. 

Most of all, the Law is intended to give its follow- 
ers purity and holiness. Cleanliness in dress and 
body, by washing and removing of impurities, is en- 
joined by the Law; but it must be connected with 
purity of action, and with a heart free from low 
principles and bad habits. It would be extremely 
bad for man to content himself with a purity ob- 
tained by washing and cleanliness in dress and toilet, 
and be at the same time voluptuous and unrestrained 
in eating, drinking, and other gratifications of the 
senses. 


SELF-RULE 


Man must have control over all bodily desires. He 
must reduce them as much as possible, and only re- 
tain of them as much as is indispensable. His aim 
must be the aim of man, as man, viz.: the formation 
and perfection of ideas, and nothing else. The best 
and the sublimest among them is the idea which 
man forms of God, angels, and the rest of the crea- 
tion, according to his capacity. Such men are al- 
ways with God, and of them it is said: “Ye are 
princes, and all of you are children of the Most High.” 


WISDOM OF MAIMONIDES 153 


When man possesses a good, sound body that 
does not overpower, nor disturb the equilibrium 
within him, he possesses a divine gift. A good con- 
stitution facilitates the rule of the soul over the body; 
but it is not impossible to conquer a bad constitution 
by training, and make it subservient to man’s ulti- 
mate destiny. 
THE MerciFuL HEART 


There is a large class of Laws in our Torah the 
sole purpose of which is to fill our hearts with pity 
for the poor and infirm, to teach us never to hurt 
their feelings, nor wantonly to vex the helpless. 
Mercy, likewise, is the object of the ordinance, “Thou 
shalt not deliver unto his master the slave that is 
fled from his scourge.” But in a wider sense we 
derive from this example the duty to defend those 
who seek our protection; nay, more, we must look 
after their interests, be kind to them and never hurt 
their feelings by harsh and cruel words. 


THE Pure HEART 


There is a well-known saying of our sages. “The 
thoughts about committing a sin are a greater evil 
than the sin itself.” I can offer a good explanation 
of this strange dictum. When a person is disobedient, 
this is due to certain accidents connected with the 
corporal element in his constitution; for man sins 
only by his animal nature; whereas, thinking is a 
faculty connected with his higher and essential being. 
A person who thinks sinful thoughts sins, therefore, 
by means of the nobler portion of his self; just as 
he who causes an ignorant slave to work unjustly 
commits a lesser wrong than he who forces a free 
man or a prince to do menial labor. That which 


154 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


forms the true nature of man, with all its properties 
and powers, should only be employed in suitable 
work, in endeavoring to join higher beings, and not 
to sink to the condition of lower creatures. 


THE Pore LIPs. 


You know we condemn lowness of speech, and 
justly so; for the gift of speech is peculiar to man, 
and a boon which God granted to him, that he may 
be distinguished from the rest of living creatures. 
This gift, therefore, which God gave us in order to 
enable us to perfect ourselves, to learn and to teach, 
must not be employed in doing that which is for us 
most degrading and disgraceful. We must not imi- 
tate the songs and tales of ignorant and lascivious 
people. It may be suitable to them, but it is not fit 
for those who are told, “And ye shall be unto me a 
kingdom of priests and a holy nation.” (Exodus 
xix. 6.) 


THE BOOK OF PIOUS SOULS 
By Jehuda b. Samuel of Regensburg, d. 1217 


ON JEW AND NON-JEW 


Mislead no one through thy actions designedly, 
be he Jew or non-Jew; be not disputatious and quar- 
relsome with people, whatever be their faith. Be 
honorable in thy business dealings; do not say that 
such or such a price has been offered thee for thy 
wares when the thing is not true, and not behave as 
though thou hadst a desire to sell what thou hast 
when there is no serious thought of doing so in thy 
mind; such things are unworthy of an Israelite. If 
one, be he Jew or non-Jew, comes to borrow money 
from thee, and thou wilt not because of doubt of 
repayment, say not that thou hast no money. 

If a contract be made between Jews and non-Jews, 
binding to mutual observance and performance, the 
first must fulfill it even if the last fail to perform that 
to which they are bound. If a Jew attempt to kill a 
non-Jew, and the latter only wishes to defend him- 
self, but not in return to kill, we are bound to help 
him in his self-defense. Injustice must be done to 
none, whether he belong to our religion or another. 
On the worldly possessions of those who oppress the 
workman, who buy stolen goods, and keep articles 
decorated with heathen symbols or figures in their 
household furniture, rests no blessing. They or their 

155 


156 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


children will surely lose all they have. In thy inter- 
course with non-Jews, be careful to be as wholly 
sincere as in that with Jews; needst not that thou 
obtrude on him who is no Jew argument as to his 
religious errors, and thou wouldst do better to live 
on charity than to abscond with money not thine, 
to the disgrace of the Jewish faith and name. If one 
non-Jew seek council of thee, tell him where he will 
find a true man and not one deceiver in the place 
whither he repaireth. If thou seest a strange man of 
another faith about to commit sin, prevent its com- 
ing to pass if it be in thy power, and herein let the 
prophet Jonah be thy model. If an assassin take 
refuge with thee, give him no protection, even though 
he be a Jew; if one who bears a heavy burden on his 
shoulders meet thee on a narrow and difficult path, 
make way for him, even though he be no Jew. If 
one not a Jew observe the precepts of the natural 
(Noachian) moral law, restore to him whatsoever he 
may have lost, hold him in higher honor than the 
Israelite who neglects the truth given him by God. 
For the rest, in most places Jews are not unlike 
Christians in their morals and usages. 


On PARENTS AND CHILDREN; ON MARRIAGE 


Parents may not hinder a son’s marriage that he 
may continue to work for them; let him take a wife 
and remain with them still. If he can find no wife 
at the place where his parents live, and these be aged 
and need his care, let him not leave that city; and if, 
taking a wife, he can no longer care for such help- 
less father and mother, let him remain unwedded. 
If he can pay for the support and care of his parents, 
then he hath a right to seek a wife and settle else- 
where, only let him see to it that she is not such 


THE BOOK OF PIOUS SOULS. 157 


as is repugnant to the parents’ feelings. If his 
choice hath fallen on a worthy girl of honorable 
parentage, but his father or mother wish to force him 
to take one not worthy, because her relatives offer 
money, he needs herein by no means to yield to his 
parents’ wishes, for their proceeding is blameworthy. 
Parents must by no means, on no account whatever, 
strike a grown-up son, curse him, or so move him to 
wrath that he forget himself and with whom he is 
dealing. If children are hopelessly divided in feel- 
ing, a father does well if he arrange all things con- 
cerning his possessions while he lives, and place 
property and children alike, if they be minors, with 
all legal form under guardianship and trust. 

Let not a quite young man take to wife one who 
hath reached forty years; let no girl be married 
against her will to an elderly man or one whom she 
cannot love. It is a thing highly to be disapproved 
that elderly men should dye gray hairs black to de- 
ceive young girls as to their years. In most cases 
bad parents beget bad children. If parents have no 
scruples about false coin and false weights, the sons 
are apt to commit the same crimes. If we see about 
us so many uneducated and ignorant, but descendants 
of people of high instruction, this is the fault of 
parents whom worldly interests hath led to form con- 
nections with unlearned persons. There was a man 
who lived a poor and hard life, to whom a wealthy 
woman was offered in marriage; he refused her, for 
her brothers were unworthy and he dreaded lest his 
children by her might be the same. So far as legal 
duty goes, a man indeed need not abstain from wed- 
ding a wife so connected, just as he may repudiate 
his wife for reasons that seem trifling and inade- 
quate; but many things are permitted by the law the 


158 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 
doing of which may lay upon a man the rendering 
of a heavy account some day or other. 

On the day of the last judgment those who are of 
kindred virtue and merit will find themselves in 
final companionship with each other. The father 
then ceases to mourn and grieve over the son that 
had left him; for the joys of Paradise and the rap- 
turous delight felt in meeting the radiance of God’s 
countenance will send into oblivion all the anguish of 
the earthly life. 


THE COMPENDIUM 
By Berachya (fl. Twelfth Century) 
Translated by H. Gollancz 


ON THE SOURCES OF KNOWLEDGE 


There are three distinct forms of knowledge. First, 
the knowledge resulting from observation, t.e., know- 
ledge gained through the senses, which are the pri- 
mary sources of feeling, known as the Five Senses, 
viz.: Sight, Hearing, Smell, Taste, and Touch. Sec- 
ondly, the knowledge of the Intellect, that is, the 
knowledge which man gains of a thing without the 
instrument of sense, and without the association of 
the emotions; for instance, determining in our mind 
the beauty of truth and the abhorring of falsehood, 
without having before us any presentative images. 
Thirdly, Intuitive knowledge, which a man is bound 
to believe, and the perception of which is forced upon 
him, his consciousness being compelled to accept it 
as true; for if he did not accept it as true, he would, 
as a natural consequence, have to deny the existence 
of Mind altogether, and to make out knowledge to be 
a liar. 


ON THE CLASSIFICATION OF KNOWLEDGE 


All knowledge may be divided into three parts: 
First, the science of created matter, i.e., the science 
of the nature of all bodies, and their accidental prop- 

159 


160 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


erties. This is required for the purposes of this 
world, and it is the lowest form of knowledge. Mid- 
way stands the science, which we might term the 
“auxiliary science,” such as the science of numbers 
and their computations, the science of astronomy, 
and the science of music. These two departments of 
knowledge form the basis of all the secrets of the 
world and of the several advantages to be derived 
from them; inasmuch as they enlighten us with re- 
gard to the various handicrafts, and all forms of 
tactics, which are necessary for the development of 
the human body, and for worldly acquisitions. The 
third science is that of Theology, viz.: the science of 
the knowledge of God, and the knowledge of His Law 
and Commandments, such as may be grasped by the 
soul and the intellect. Now, every subdivision of 
this science, however diverse in various interests, 
becomes so many introductions, afforded us by God, 
to become acquainted with the Torah. It is the high- 
est form of knowledge; we are bound to cultivate 
it, for the purpose of attaining a proper understand- 
ing of our Law, and not for the purpose of attaining 
worldly advantages thereby. 


THE BOOK OF THE CHAZARS 
By Judah ha-Levi (c. 1085-c. 1140) 
Translated by H. Hirschfeld 


ON THE FACULTY OF SPEECH 


The faculty of speech is to transmit the idea of 
the speaker into the soul of the hearer. Such inten- 
tion, however, can only be carried out to perfection 
by means of oral communication. This is better than 
writing. The proverb is: “From the mouths of 
scholars, but not from the mouth of books.” Verbal 
communication finds various aids either in pausing 
or in continuing to speak, according to the require- 
ments of the sentence, by raising or lowering the 
voice, in expressing astonishment, question, narra- 
tive, desire, fear or submission by means of gestures, 
without which speech by itself would remain inade- 
quate. Occasionally the speaker even has recourse 
to movements of eyes, eyebrows, or the whole head 
and hands, in order to express anger, pleasure, hu- 
mility or haughtiness to the degree desired. 


On REVELATION 


Our intellect which, a priori, is only theoretical, 
being sunk in matter, cannot penetrate to the true 
knowledge of things, except by the grace of God, 
by special faculties which He has placed in the senses. 

161 


162 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


There is no difference between my perception 
and thine that this circumscribed disc, giving forth 
light and heat, is the sun. Should even these char- 
acteristics be denied by reason, this does no harm, 
because we can derive it from argument for our pur- 
poses. Thus also a sharp-eyed person, looking for 
a camel, can be assisted by a weak-eyed and squint- 
ing one who tells him that he has seen two cranes at 
a certain place. The sharp-eyed person then knows 
that the other has only seen a camel, and the weak- 
ness of his eyes made him believe that it was a 
crane, and his squint that there were two cranes. 
In this way the sharp-eyed person can make use of 
the evidence of the weak-eyed one, whilst he excuses 
his faulty description by his faulty sight. A similar 
relation prevails between senses and imagination 
on one side and reason on the other. The Creator 
was as wise in arranging this relation between the 
exterior senses and the things perceived, as He was 
in fixing the relation between the abstract sense and 
the uncorporeal substratum. To the chosen among 
His creatures He has given an inner eye which sees 
things as they really are, without any alteration. | 
Reason is thus in a position to come to a conclusion 
regarding the true spirit of these things. He to whom 
this eye has been given is clear-sighted indeed. Other 
people, who appear to him as blind, he guides on 
their way. It is possible that this eye is the power 
of imagination as long as it is under the control of 
the intellect. It beholds, then, a grand and awful 
sight which reveals unmistakable truths among the 
whole of this species and those sights. By this I 
mean all the prophets. For they witnessed things 
which are described to the other in the same man- 
ner as we do with things we have seen. We testify 


THE BOOK OF THE CHAZARS ~ 162 


to the sweetness of honey and the bitterness of the 
coloquinth; and if any one contradicts us, we say that 
he has failed to grasp a fact of natural history. Those 
prophets without doubt saw the divine world with 
the inner eye; they beheld a sight which harmonized 
with their natural imagination. Whatever they 
wrote down, they endowed with attributes as if they 
had seen them in corporeal form. Those attributes 
are true as far as regard what is sought by inspira- 
tion, imagination, and feeling; they are untrue as 
regards the reality sought by reason. 


ON THE JUSTICE OF GOD DISPLAYED IN NATURE 


See how wonderfully conceived is the nature of 
the creatures; how many marvellous gifts they pos- 
sess which show forth the intention of an all-wise 
Creator, and the will of an omniscient and all-power- 
ful Being. He has endowed the small and the great 
with all necessary internal and external senses and 
limbs. He gave them organs corresponding to their 
instincts. He gave the hare and stag the means of 
flight required by their timid nature; endowed the 
lion with ferocity and the instruments for robbing 
and tearing. He who considers the formation, use, 
and relation of the limbs to the animal instinct, sees 
wisdom and so perfect an arrangement that no doubt 
or uncertainty can remain in his soul concerning the 
justice of the Creator. When an evil thought sug- 
gests that there is injustice in the circumstance that 
the hare falls a prey to the lion or wolf, and the fly 
to the spider, Reason steps in warning him as fol- 
lows: How can I charge the All-Wise with injustice 
when I am convinced of His justice, and that in- 
justice is quite out of the question? If the lion’s 
pursuit of the hare and the spider’s of the fly were 


164 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


mere accidents, I should assert the necessity of ac- 
cident. I see, however, that this wise and just Man- 
ager of the world equipped the lion with the means 
for hunting, with ferocity, strength, teeth and claws; 
that He furnished the spider with cunning and taught 
it to weave a net which it constructs without having 
learnt to do so; how He equipped it with the in- 
struments required, and appointed the fly as its food, 
just as many fishes serve other fishes for food. Can 
I say aught but that this is the fruit of a wisdom 
which I am unable to grasp, and that I must submit 
to Him who is called “The Rock whose doing is per- 
fect”? (Deut. xxxii. 4). 


On INDIVIDUAL OPINION IN RELIGIOUS MATTERS 


Follow not thy own taste and opinion in religious 
questions, lest they throw thee into doubts, which 
lead to heresy. Nor wilt thou be in harmony with 
one of thy friends on any point. Every individual 
has his own taste and opinion. It is only necessary 
to examine the roots of the traditional and written 
laws with the inferences codified for practice, in 
order to trace the branches back to the roots. Where 
they lead thee, there put thy faith, though thy mind 
and feeling shrink from it. Common view and as- 
sumption deny the non-existence of the vacuum, 
whilst logical conclusion rejects its existence. Ap- 
pearance denies the infinite divisibility of a body, 
whilst logic makes it an axiom. Appearance denies 
that the earth is a globe and the one hundred and 
sixtieth part of the sun’s disc. There are also other 
matters which astronomy establishes against mere 
appearances. Whatever the sages declared lawful 
they did neither in obedience to their own taste nor 


RHE BOOKVORAT EE ICRAZARS: | 165 


inclination, but to the results of the inherited know- 
ledge handed down to them. The same was the 
case with what they declared unlawful. He who is 
unable to grasp this wisdom, but judges their speech 
according to his own conception, will misinterpret 
them in the same way as people do with the words 
of natural philosophers and astronomers. 


On ASCETICISM 


The divine law imposes no asceticism on us. It 
rather desires that we should keep the equipoise, 
and grant every mental and physical faculty its due, 
as much as it can bear, without overburdening one 
faculty at the expense of another. If a person gives 
way to licentiousness he blunts his mental faculty; 
he who is inclined to violence injures some other 
faculty. Prolonged fasting is no act of piety for 
a weak person who, having succeeded in checking 
his desires, is not greedy. For him fasting is a bur- 
den and self-denial. Neither is diminution of wealth 
an act of piety, if it is gained in a lawful way, and 
if its acquisition does not interfere with study and 
good works, especially for him who has a household 
and children. He may spend part of it in almsgiving, 
which would not be displeasing to God; but to in- 
crease it is better for himself. Our law, as a whole, 
is divided between fear, love, and joy, by each of 
which one can approach God. 


THE HOLY SHEKEL 
By Joseph Kimchi (1105-1170) 
Translated by H. Gollancz 


On WISDOM 


Wisdom giveth life to its possessor, paying the 
reward of God for His service. By wisdom doth 
man acquire the days of this life, a goodly name, and 
honour after death. 

The man whom God with much knowledge hath 
graced need have no care for wealth or possessions; 
*t is peace that marketh the wise man’s end; the end 
of wealth is bitter, and sad remorse. 

Search thou for understanding, seek wisdom, and 
regard not the issue; investigate her hidden worth, 
her treasure-store, and beauty. 

Understanding without wisdom is as a bow with- 
out a string; but the man in whom these two are 
found will ever “rise from high to higher.” 

Not he who wanteth bread doth want; who wisdom 
wanteth, wanteth much; he lacketh that which sus- 
taineth life. 

Knowledge and action are twins by birth, one giv- 
ing glory to the other. Action without understand- 
ing, how can it be pure? And where there is no 
action, what reward hath understanding? 

A man of wisdom will continue in the search for 
wisdom, seeking knowledge wherever it may dwell 

166 


THE HOLY SHEKEL 167 


or be kept. There is no fool equal to him who may 
think that he hath finished and completed his studies. 

If a thing be clearly good, let the man of wisdom 
take hold of it; if it clearly doth harm, let him move 
away from it; if it be doubtful whether it be good or 
ill, let him cast his burden upon the Lord. 

In enquiring for knowledge, ask questions, even 
though they give evidence of folly; but in keeping 
knowledge, guard it as thou wouldst guard the dia- 
mond, agate, or amethyst. 

Knowledge impressed upon the heart of the young 
is like engraving on stone; but if man take to learn- 
ing in old age, it is like making an impression on 
sand. 

Beware of the simpleton who is religious, and the 
fool who is ceremonial, also of the scholar who is 
without scruple; their hope will indeed be lost 
forever. 

The subject of study inscribe on thy heart, and 
repeat it twice and thrice until thou dost know. 
Exceeding much study may weaken thy sense, and 
the intellect becloud. The lamp, when trimmed, will 
burn on anew; fed with too much oil, it will burn 
itself out. 


On HuMILITY 


Meekness of spirit is the halo of the wise; impu- 
dence is the sign of the fool. 

In mixing with men, it is often useful to be dumb, 
though able to speak; to be deaf, though able to hear; 
and blind, though able to see. In this way shalt thou 
be much courted, and become their chief and ruler. 

He is not of the highest quality who only abstaineth 
from harming his fellow-men, but he who taketh 
upon himself a share of the burden of their injuries; 


168 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


and, whatsoever may happen, he goeth forth to meet 
them with a cheerful countenance. 

The end of all strife and contention is regret; but 
the end of humility is strength and possession. 


On SELF-DENIAL 


Who is the man of wisdom, that may rightly boast 
of wisdom? ’T is he who, recognizing the sinful 
thing, keepeth himself aloof from it. 

There are things which thy soul longeth after, 
which thou shouldst keep at arm’s length; some 
things may be prohibited for which thou hast no 
desire; leave these alone; some things, too, are pro- 
hibited, which, even if allowed, would find man’s 
soul recoil from them. 

Happy the man who divorceth his desire for the 
glory of that which cometh not nor appeareth; for 
no man will regret having stifled, to the glory of God, 
the desire that assailed him. 


On ABSTINENCE 


To be too fond of this world and that which is 
therein provoketh the wrath of Heaven. If thou 
sacrifice this fondness, thou shalt be sure of the 
glory and grace of thy God. 

All man’s striving in this world is but for honour, 
riches, and ease; and yet he who loveth this life too 
much is often far removed from them, and more 
closely bound to sorrow and sighing. 

Enquire of the man who hath gotten himself 
wealth, if he hath also assured himself of the years 
of his life. 

If in all his days here pursuing vain toil, man doth 


THE HOLY SHEKEL - 169 


not obtain his will and desire, how can he attain 
his will in that world for which he had no feeling, 
and after which he never did run? 


On KINDNESS AND CHARITY 


If thou wilt but reflect that all thy sustenance is 
given by the grace of God and His mercy, thou wilt 
come to see that Heaven hath placed in thy hands 
the poor man’s dues, even the food of him who lack- 
eth all things. 

As the spirited horse, though famished and worn, 
keepeth straight to his course, and falleth not by 
the way, even so is the generous of heart with his 
gifts; another to stay, he’ll go foodless himself. 


On PoverTy AND ASKING HELP 


Of all the bitter things thou hast tasted, is there 
one more bitter than to beg a favour from thy friends 
and companions? 

Shouldst thou need a gift, ask rather of one who 
once was rich and hath become poor, than ask of one 
who was once poor and hath now become rich, and 
is a man of means. 

"T is in the hour when thy worldly goods are few 
that thou must beware that thou be not poor in spirit 
and soul. 


On SILENCE, AND SPEAKING OPPORTUNELY; 
On TRUTH 


Silence is never the loser; in speaking there’s al- 
ways regret; *t is far better to be silent and still, than 
to babble and be nearer to sin. 

At all times keep this rule in mind: there’s some- 


170 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 
thing still better than silence, ’t is this—to speak the 
truth. 

Nothing is of greater honour to a man than the 
word fitly and rightly spoken; it setteth a golden 
crown upon his head, and placeth the chain of gold 
around his neck. 

Answer the wise in a fair, honest way when they 
discuss a matter with knowledge and wisdom; give 
ear to such, and they will become thy benefactors, 
for truth is a thing to be loved, desired, and received 
with favour; and even though our friend be a Plato, 
great and exalted, and renowned for his learning, 
the right of our judgment we claim in the matter of 
truth, for Truth is to us a friend dearer by far than 
aught. 

Speak the truth without favour, and respect not 
old age; Truth is older, strong in years as the world. 


On COMPANIONSHIP AND ASSOCIATION; 
ON THE TESTING OF FRIENDS, THEIR INDULGENCE, 
AND FORGIVENESS 


Above all, thy true and faithful companion thou 
shouldst know, his faults to pardon and to forgive 
his sins; the man who is ever ready to seek offence 
keep at arm’s length, let him meet his own kind. 

Change not a friend that is old and dear for a 
new, while the old is heart and heart with thee still. 
Contemn not a man because he doth err. Let not 
one man be despised of thee; in like manner a 
thousand friends will never suffice; let thy substance 
and silver win them for thee. 

The friendship of a stupid man is bound to end 
in sorrow; a wise man will find relief and refresh- 
ing if he hold aloof from him. 


THE HOLY SHEKEL 171 

The best of beasts require the whip; the best of 
wives their lord and sire; the wisest man advice doth 
need, without it will his wisdom lack. 

Esteem the friend who chideth thee at any time, 
but not in the presence of another; and let him think 
he hath gained thereby some part at least of thy 
power and possession. 

Trust not the man who boreth thee with his 
troubles, but keepeth from thee his joys; his tongue 
may be all smooth for thee; his friendship’s but 
alloy. 

Love thy friend more than thou wouldst thy 
brother; for until he become my truest friend, how 
can I love even a brother? 

Judge all men’s errors kindly, even before thy in- 
dulgence is craved; nor think ill of the man whose 
guilt is not proved, for in this case the guilt will be 
thine own. 

Be quick to pardon thy friend’s transgression; and 
should he become thy foe, reveal it not in the course 
of thy contention. 


MISCELLANEOUS 


Not in the warning by experience brought doth 
highest wisdom lie; but to be forewarned, and not to 
fall, this is true wisdom. 

Divulge not to thy friend a secret, the secret which 
thou wouldst conceal from thy foe. When thy friend 
revealeth a secret unto thee, forget it, and dismiss it 
from thy mind. 

Why blame a man for unfolding thy secret, if 
thine own heart was distressed in keeping it hid? 
If thou thyself thy secret cannot conceal, why expect 
another to keep it, seeing that the thing is not his? 


172 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 
The world grows sick of the society of those who 


never cease to prate. 
Visit a friend, visit the sick; but, pray, cease from 
visiting at all, if thou must needs be heavy and dull. 
If thou listen to counsel, thou’lt shine forth bright, 
and thy soul shall be at ease with herself, finding 


favor with all. 


THE FOUNDATION OF RELIGIOUS FEAR 


(Yesod Hayirah) 
Translated by H. Gollancz 


Fear God, and men will fear thee, though they be 
stronger and mightier than thou. For when thou 
opposest them with the strength of thy fear of God, 
they in their terror will tremble in their hearts like 
women; while the sense of confidence, security, and 
tranquillity will suffice thee to draw thy foot out of 
the snare of the fowler. 

Fear God out of love, and be thou perfect, and 
thy fear will then be whole; ’t is meet that it should 
be so, for He formed thee out of nothing, and from 
nothingness He brought thee to stand before Him 
continually, and fashioned thee into a beautiful form. 

Fear God; fear His wise men who teach thee the 
right way; and consider how to follow them, and to 
learn knowledge and law from their mouths. Know 
that thy soul is in their hands, and might be bound 
up in the bundle of everlasting life. 

Learning without religious fear is as a woman of 
contradictions, disobedient, and lacking in manners; 
one who makes her eyes look large by the use of 
rouge and eye-paint, and adorns herself with neck- 
laces and ear-rings. What is the use of all her 
beauty and splendour, when her clothing is untidy, 
and her true nature is disclosed? 

173 


174 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


Obtain wisdom, and care not in whose hands it 
may be found, and how it may be regarded. Is the 
clay vessel regarded according to its maker? Is it 
not the thought of what is placed within the vessel? 
There are weeds which flourish like the lily, and 
through their flourishing men suffer them to rise at 
the very head of the garden. 

A man should be sensible in recognizing his posi- 
tion, and regulate all his actions by personal experi- 
ence. Surely when a man walks in his integrity he 
will be at ease, and find that in this world all’s well 
at the end; but as soon as he turns either to the right 
or the left, the scent and flavour of his character 
will have faded and evaporated. 

Is it good for thee that thou sufferest others to 
put thee to shame, whilst thou thyself findest thy ac- 
tions blameworthy and reproachful? Would it not 
be better if thou wert to set the eyes of thy heart 
as a watch-tower over all thy paths? Why shouldst 
thou close thine eyes as the blind, and not be 
ashamed of thine open nakedness? 

Know that by meekness thou shalt stand upon 
the strong fort, upon the rocky crag and cliff; and 
if thy heart dwell in lowliness within thee, thy dwell- 
ing shall be in the topmost station without. See how 
oil, smooth in itself, rises to the surface, and is used 
for the anointing of kings and princes. 

Bear with men and God will bear with thee; in His 
mercies He will be long-suffering with thee. Bear 
with men, and they will bear with thee, and God 
will give thee strength from on high. Be like the 
ass crouching under its burden, even though it break 
its back and bones. 

The attractive woman adorns herself in fine ap- 
parel, so that she may be showy in her beauty, and 


FOUNDATION OF RELIGIOUS FEAR” 175 


she is as buoyant as a horse harnessed. You might 
think that in her love there is relief; but set your 
heart to understand her end, and you will find that 
the end is shame and reproach. 

Grasp the knowledge that desire in thee is a sick- 
ness, affecting thee just as decay and the moth affect 
garments, tearing them; and if you think that thereby 
you will obtain those objects which you have not as 
yet obtained, you give evidence that your common 
sense and natural ability have already taken leave 
of you. 

Acquire according to what you require, and hon- 
estly, too; for why weary and worry yourself with 
that which is beyond your requirements? For this 
you are keen; it is not your allotment; why should 
you break into it? All the share that you get is your 
labour; the remainder is left to him who is a stranger 
to it. 

Rule over the words of thy mouth, and they will 
not rule over thee, but thou shalt be the stronger 
and shalt prevail. Only speak after due silence, and 
do not repeat what has once been said. How good 
and pleasant is the word spoken in its season, as the 
former and the latter rain which cover the corn- 
field! 

Take thy friend into thy most secret counsel, but 
of a thousand choose one. Then turn from thine own 
unto his advice, provided thy intellect be as clear 
and serene as his; for thou possibly wilt see only 
that which meets the eye, whilst he will see the 
matter from all sides. 

When men ask thy opinion concerning a difficult 
question which is being raised, and weighed in the 
balance, give them a direct reply, even if it be heavy 
for the heart of man to bear; and even though the 


176 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


question be light as mountain chaff, let it be like 
a bar of iron and lead; give it thy proper attention. 

The acquisition of friends, constant and true, is a 
good thing, and their love is worth keeping; thou 
shouldst even close thine eyes, and pretend not to see 
their faults, wilful or otherwise. Can the potter join 
the fragments of earthenware once broken asunder, 
and can they be renewed when once destroyed? 


RHYMES ON MORAL INSTRUCTION 


By Hai Gaon (d. 1038) 
Translated by H. Gollancz 


On FRIENDSHIP 


Associate with the select and those who can dis- 
cern: adhere to them and incline not to foolish ones. 
Bend thine ear to the speech of the wise, and thine 
eye will gather from them precious stones. 

Always respond with a greeting to him who greets 
thee, and thou shalt find peace. 

Should thy companion be raised on high, show 
not by any act or request that thou art envious of 
him; in conversing with him, be as a poor suppliant, 
and never call to mind the happenings of former 
days. Understand when a rich man is raised over 
the heads of others, all his poorer brethren will be 
sure to be his enemies. 

Shouldst thou know a secret belonging to thy friend 
or companion, then let thy inward parts be its store- 
house and burial place. 

Choose a relative or friend as thy neighbour, and 
he will act in like manner towards thee. 

Keep thy friend constantly as the apple of the eye, 
lest his affection for thee vanish into nought; for the 
hate of thy friend will be the greater when his love 
flees from thee, and enters the counsel of thy enemies. 

Forgive thy friend his error and fault, and desire 
no longer to turn away from him. 

177 


178 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 

Treat thy companion’s as thy own child, and his 
father as though he were thy grandsire. | 

Serve men and be of assistance to them, then shalt 
thou be esteemed, and honourably mentioned by 
them. And shouldst thou hear a man malign his 
comrade, ignore it, as though he did not speak it. 
Let not a hair’s breadth come between thee and him; 
keep him, lest he be detached from thee, and be lost. 

Mankind is like an ocean of wide expanse; beware 
lest thou enter therein and slip. Should thy friend 
become friendly with thine enemy, rebuke him, but 
let him not be admitted into thy secret. 

Never be surety for a man, otherwise thou wilt 
never keep friend or comrade. 

Love thy friend ever as thyself, and intercede with 
Holy God for his welfare. 

In three dealings aim at getting the best: in buy- 
ing a field, in obtaining a friend, and in acquiring a 
book. 


On WoMAN 


All thy days love the wife of thy youth, and place 
thy love well fixed in her heart; yet put the fear and 
dread of thee within her, even thy reproof, and let 
her not know of thy secrets. 

Converse not freely with the wife of thy friend, nor 
be the brother and companion of scoffers. From a 
strange woman let thy eye be far, and from her who 
flattereth with her words. 

As for woman and friends, desire but those who 
are good, not such as are comely in appearance, yet 
of evil heart; nor envy thou the possessions of men, 
or hold in contempt the destitute and poor. 

Confide not in woman and servants, nor entrust 
them with secrets. 


RHYMES ON MORAL INSTRUCTION — 179 


Look not upon thy neighbour’s wife, and keep thine 
own beloved within thy house; it is to a woman’s 
honour and for a man’s glory that she should not 
glance at men. 

Turn aside, and quarrel not with a child, a deaf- 
mute, or one of woman-kind. 

Do not worry if it be thy lot to have a daughter; 
trust in God, and rejoice and be glad in thy fortune. 
Many a daughter is better than a son, and a source 
of happiness and brightness to her parents. 


On SELF-RELIANCE 


Wherever thou dwellest and sojournest, look to 
thyself; and with regard to thy pocket, envy not thy 
companion. Eat bread and salt, and feed on herbs, 
and ask not a dole from the wealthy. 

Rather die and be buried than go about and beg 
of thine own kind. For why ask a favour of one 
dependent on favours? Make thy request unto God: 
is not everything in the hands of God? 

Be not asleep; look at the ant, and let not thy foot 
be slack; in the summer gather month by month of 
that which thou shalt eat in the days of winter and 
frost. 

Stand not at the doors of the great, and lust not 
after rich dishes. 

Teach thy son, I pray thee, some handicraft, so 
that he may be prepared to-day for the morrow, 
aye, and for the days and years to come, for these 
may prove as the bite of the adder, when Time brings 
its reverses. How can a man, knowing all this, sleep; 
how all they who, realizing it, are filled with the load 
of anxious thought! 

In view of harvest-time arrange the sowing, and 
for the days of thy old age the planting; for know 


180 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


that death in thy dwelling is better than to apply for 
the help of the rich. 

From thy youth choose to do at every hour, aye, 
at every moment, whatever falls to thy lot. 

Go into partnership with all men, if it be for 
mutual aid, but do no business with a kinsman. 

Awake from thy slumber, and rise up; read and 
search, in order to understand that which is yet 
hidden. The man devoid of understanding is assur- 
edly no better than the beast. 


On BENEVOLENCE 


Rejoice not at the awful and terrible day which 
befalls a man, lest it may light on thee in the hey- 
day (of life). Seek not and welcome not the day of 
his calamity. Canst thou know what may happen to 
thee on the morrow? 

If a man hire himself unto thee and serve thee, 
regard him as though he were thy child; should he 
be slow in his services, deal gently with him. Do not 
fail to pay every man the wages for which he has 
laboured. 

Do kindness; be it thy part to rescue, Wi pc and 
deliver, knowing that all our days are as a shadow. 
Draw out from their prison-house those that dwell in 
darkness, and lay not out thy money to usury. 

Before thou dost attend to thine own wants and 
duties, ascertain the nature of thy beast, and supply 
its needs. 

Be scrupulous in attending to what is necessary for 
the decent burial of an unknown; accompany the 
remains to the grave, and the mourners to their home. 

Eat not to the full in thy own house, and forget 
the one who seeks alms at thy door. 











RHYMES ON MORAL INSTRUCTION 181 


Look upon humanity as one whole, and be in con- 
stant dread on account of it. 

Withhold not kindness from thy neighbour until the 
morrow, lest thine iniquity bring its punishment. 

Be near at hand with food and raiment, and lend 
unto the poor; covet not thy neighbour. It is a 
precious thing and fine, indeed, to be liberal of heart, 
remembering, too, that humility is the twin-sister of 
liberality. You can tell a man by his good sense and 
skill, and judge a craftsman according to the finish of 
his work. 


MISCELLANEOUS 


Let thy work be truthful and straight, and thy bal- 
ance just and trustworthy; wealth gained by oppres- 
sion will melt away, and be trodden under foot; all 
its weight and burden will be spent in vain. 

By lopping the top branches a shoot will rise and 
bud forth; in like manner smite thy son, and thou 
shalt rejoice and find gladness in him. 

Why weary thyself with all pains to acquire riches? 
Confide in God, and He will lead thee alway. 

Merchandise is good for men; even princes and the 
old might buy and sell. 

Eat not until thou dost feel the desire for food, 
and art hungry, and thou wilt enjoy it and relish it. 
Furthermore, take somewhat less than thy fill and 
then thy sleep will be good and refreshing. 

Be not over-anxious about any thing or purpose, 
and tell not thy dream unto thy foe. 

If a man call thee to a suit, contend not with him, 
—why walk into the sea while it rages? At all events, 
beware of the multitude of words; for if thou act 
not on thy guard, they will contend with thee in 
enmity. 


182 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


If thou hast not learnt wisdom and understanding, 
take thy seat among experts among the people, when 
they are assembled, and be not ashamed to learn 
and inquire. Be the tail among the wise, and thou 
mayest become the head. 

Let thy praise be ever according to rule and 
method. If it be thy wish to publish it in honour of 
a man, keep it within limits of the subject and the 
work extolled. 

If thou dost chastise thy child in childhood, thou 
wilt raise him and remove him away from pitfalls. 
And whatever he may turn out at twenty, so will 
he remain as he grows older, for better or for worse. 

Act straight, and in praiseworthy fashion, and flee 
from men of no character; rather be the tail among 
lions, for thou might rise; but if thou become the 
head of the foxes, thou wilt be bowed down. 

Never envy the great, nor covet the acquisitions of 
the man who has accomplished great things. 

Grieve not because a thing is bound to cease and 
pass away, nor tread upon the highway alone and 
solitary. Many a thing will come about as quickly 
as thou dost wish it, when thou wouldst scarcely have 
expected it. 

Consider the effect before it supervenes, and think 
of the end at the beginning. | 

Gather and collect all kinds of wisdom, acquire 
understanding, not gold and silver; and thou wilt 
gain both for thyself and for thy associate relief 
from sickness and from hurt. Be on terms of friend- 
ship with such as cultivate (wisdom), and so estab- 
lish firmly thy steps; thereby also shalt thou come 
to understand her mysteries. 


SCHULCHAN ARUCH 
By Joseph Caro (1488-1575) 


On RESPECT FOR PARENTS 


How far does respect for one’s father extend? One 
may not take the place destined for him in the as- 
sembly of his friends, or at his customary place of 
worship, or at the table; one may not contradict his 
words or pass judgment on them, even in passing; 
one may not call him by name, but one must always 
say: my father, my teacher! Should the father’s 
name be the same as that of some other people, and 
it is desired to address one of them, and the name 
is unusual, then some change should be made in 
the name; but in the father’s absence it is permis- 
sible (to address one of the other people by that 
name). 

Respect for parents goes so far that should they 
take from him a purse of money and in his presence 
throw it into the sea, he must not shame them nor 
be vexed in their presence nor be wroth with them. 
He must take God’s command upon himself and be 
silent! 

The father, however, should not make it too dif- 
ficult for his children to practise this commandment 
(of honoring father and mother) nor must he be so 
particular about his honor as to cause them to sin; 
he should sometimes rather act as if he did not notice 

183 


184 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


an offence, for every father is permitted occasionally 
to dispense with the honor due. A father who beats 
his grown-up son, provided the latter has reached, 
according to some, the age of twenty-two or, accord- 
ing to others, of twenty-four, will be punished with 
excommunication, for he transgresses the prohibi- 
tion: Thou shalt lay nothing in the path of the blind 
whereon he might fall (thou shalt give no one cause 
to sin—the son might have defended himself). 


On TEACHERS 


The school-teacher may not punish his children 
with a switch or with a rod in a malevolent and 
merciless manner but only with a small strap. He 
must teach the children the whole day long and 
pretty well into the night, in order to accustom them 
from their very youth to study the law day and night, 
as is commanded in Scripture. School children must 
not be disturbed and on Sabbath eve and on the eve 
of festival days they must, of their own accord, re- 
main in school until shortly before evening. Even 
if the Temple were to be rebuilt, children must not 
be kept from school! One teacher will suffice for 
twenty pupils; but should there be more, up to forty, 
an assistant teacher must be engaged. If the com- 
munity has engaged only one teacher for all the 
children of the town, and there are more than twenty- 
five of them, then the teacher must engage an as- 
sistant and the teacher is bound to pay him. . . 
In a town of more than forty children, two teachers 
must be engaged. A child may be taken from one 
teacher and given to another who is abler. The other 
teacher, however, must live in the same town, nor 
should a stream pass between the houses of the two; 
otherwise a strong bridge must cross the stream so 


i es > 2 


SCHULCHAN ARUCH 185 


that the child may not fall into the water. Under 
no circumstances may a child be taken from one 
town to another. A teacher who leaves his children 
alone or does a separate business or is generally 
negligent in his calling—at him is aimed verse xlviii. 
10 of Jeremiah: “Cursed be he that doeth the work 
of the Lord with a slack hand.” Therefore only a 
God-fearing and able school-teacher should be en- 
gaged. A teacher may not be up too late at night 
so that he may not be dull in his teaching. He should 
not fast, neither should he drink or eat too much or 
too little, for such things prevent him from per- 
forming his functions properly; if he swerves from 
this, he should be removed. If there is a teacher in 
town and another comes who is abler, let the former 
be removed and the latter be engaged in his stead. 
If two teachers are available, one of whom indeed 
teaches much but takes no care to be intelligible to 
his pupils, whereas the other teaches less but enables 
his pupils to grasp what he teaches, then the latter 
is to be engaged. He who is unmarried may not be- 
come a school-teacher, for mothers bring their sons 
to school and this might lead to temptation. But the 
married teacher need not have his wife about in 
the schoolroom all the time; she should rather re- 
main at home and he in his schoclroom. A woman 
may not be a school-teacher because fathers, too, 
bring their children to school. 


On JUDGES 


Nobody may be a judge in the case of a friend, 
even though the friendship be not intimate; also not 
in the case of an enemy, even though the enmity be 
not extraordinary; but both parties must be indif- 


186 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


ferent to the judge; it were best if they were wholly 
unknown fo him. 

Two scholars, who are enemies of each other, may 
not sit in the same court. : 

The judges may not be related to one another or 
to the witnesses; neither may they have sins upon 
themselves. 

If a judge knows that his fellow judge is a robber 
or a knave, he may not sit with him in judgment. 

Each of the three judges shall have the following 
seven characteristics: 1. Wisdom. 2. Humility. 3. 
Fear of God. 4. He must be a foe to money. 5. He 
must love mankind. 6. He must be loving and truth- 
ful. 7. He must have a good name. 

A judge may not act as such in a case from which 
he may derive the slightest advantage. 


On INTEREST 


The person who lends money at interest is con- 
sidered immoral; his possessions and money will 
diminish and will profit him nothing. 

It is always forbidden to do work on condition 
that the beneficiary do some more difficult work in 
return. Likewise one may not render a service on 
condition that a similar service be rendered in re- 
turn, but at a more difficult time. 

A workman may not lend money to an individual 
on condition that the latter reserve for him all work 
that he may have occasion to have done. 


On CHARITY 


Whoever is not in need of charity but deceives 
the public and takes it, will be in actual need before 
his days are ended. And whosoever is so much in 


SCHULCHAN ARUCH 187 
need of charity that he cannot live unless he receive 
it—as, for instance, a man who is old or sick or in 
constant pain,—but takes none out of pride, is guilty 
of bloodshed and is responsible for his own life; so 
that he has nothing for his suffering, save punish- 
ment and sin. But, whosoever is in need of charity 
and suffers patiently and leads a pinched and humble 
life, so as not to become a burden to society, will live 
to help others some day; and it is with reference to 
such a person that the Bible says, “Blessed is the man 
who trusteth in the Lord.” 


MEDIEVAL POETRY 


Who shall narrate Thy wonders wrought of old? 
The utterance of the lips Thou didst create, 

But all Thy majesty and power untold, 
Who shall narrate? 


Thy ways on earth in song we celebrate, 
Though none may Thy similitude behold, 
Yet know we by Thy works that Thou art great. 


Thousands of angels, by Thy word controll’d 
To do Thy bidding, Thy commands await: 
Yet of them all, Thy wonders manifold 
Who shall narrate? 
SAMUEL B. KALONYMUS. 
Tr. by Alice Lucas. 


At the dawn I seek Thee, 
Rock and refuge tried, 
In due service speak Thee, 

Morn and eventide. 


i188 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


’Neath Thy greatness shrinking, 
Stand I sore afraid, 

All my secret thinking 
Before Thee laid. 


Little to Thy glory 
Heart or tongue can do; 
Small remains the story, 
Add we spirit too. 


Yet since man’s praise ringing 
May seem good to Thee, 
I will praise Thee singing 
While Thy breath’s in me. 
SOLOMON IBN GABIROL. 
Tr. by I. Zangwill. 


How long wilt thou in childhood’s slumber lie? 
Knowing that youth flies like chaff the wind before. 
Can spring forever last? Nay, soon draws nigh 
Old age’s messenger with tresses hoar. 
Shake thyself free from sin, as ere they fly, 
The birds shake off the night-dew’s pearled store. 
Cast off temptations that thy peace defy 
Like troubled waves upon a rocky shore, 
And follow after that pure company 
Of souls that seek God’s goodness evermore. 
JUDAH HA-LEVI. — 


Strayed in mid-youth, rouse up, nor sleep, for lo! 
The days of youth like clouds of smoke will pass. 
Ere evening falls, thou shalt be withered grass, 

Though morning saw thee like a lily blow. 


SCHULCHAN ARUCH 189 


Why waste on ancestors a heated breath, 
Or note which progeny was Abraham’s? 
Whether his food be herbs or Bashan rams, 
Man, wretched wight, is on his way to death. 
SOLOMON IBN GABIROL. 
Tr. by I. Zangwill. 


Evil seed our sins have sown, 

Evil fruit from them has grown, 

Seek we then, to end our woes, 

Him who knows our frame and knows 
That dust are we. 


Smitten are we and contrite, 

Lo! the heavens in His sight 

Are not pure, nor angel band 

Stainless: how before Him stand 
Then can we? 


Earth-borne creatures, wrought of clay, 
Dare we boast us of to-day, 
When to-morrow, ended all, 
To the land beyond recall 
Journey we? 


Forward folly led us wrong, 

Our deliverance tarries long. 

For the harvest moon is set 

And the summer past, nor yet 
Saved are we. 


Chastised long our fathers were— 
Shall we still the burdens bear 
Of their sins? Nay, grant, Most High, 
Us to live and not to die, 

Even we. 


190 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


Unto God our souls we trust, 
Though our bodies sink to dust. 
Rich and poor, the self-same seed, 
All our Father’s sons indeed 

Are not we? 


Ye unto His word who cling 

Know that God is Lord and King, 

Ruling all. The eternal Rock, 

He the Shepherd, we the flock, 
His are we. 


Vain the wisdom is of man, 

He who knoweth not his span, 

Nor the hour of life’s decay; 

We are but of yesterday, 
Naught know we. 


Hearken to Thy servant’s prayer, 
For our souls are filled with care, 
Courage fails and hope grows less, 
Exiled and in great distress 

Now are we. 


Comfort from Thy word we take 

That Thou, for Thy mercy’s sake, 

Wilt avert Thy chastisement 

From the truly penitent: 
Wherefore we 

Do declare that verily 


Guilty are we. 
y ABRAHAM IBN EZRA. 


Tr. by Alice Lucas. 


Back, my soul, into thy nest; 
Earth is not for thee; 


SCHULCHAN ARUCH 191 


Still in heaven find thy nest; 
There thou canst be free. 


Strive not for this world’s command, 
Look to what thou hast, 

Thou amidst the angels’ band 
Shar’d the great repast. 


Demean thee ‘fore the majesty 
Of Him who reigneth there, 
And in a lordly company 


Be thou the courtier. 
JUDAH HA-LEVI. 


Tr. by M. Simon. 


Wheresoe’er I turn my eyes 

Around on Earth or toward the skies, 
I see Thee in the starry field, 

I see Thee in the harvest’s yield, 

In every breath, in every sound, 

An echo of Thy name is found. 


The blade of grass, the simple flower, 
Bear witness to Thy matchless power. 
My every thought, Eternal God of Heaven, 
Ascends to Thee, to whom all praise be given. 
ABRAHAM IBN EZRA. 
Tr. by D. E. de L. 


My thoughts astounded ask me why 
Towards the whirling wheels on high 
In ecstasy I rush and fly. 


The living God is my desire, 
It carries me on wings of fire, 
Body and soul to Him aspire, 


192 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


God is at once my joy and fate, 
This yearning me He did create, 
At thought of Him I palpitate. 


Shall song with all its loveliness 
Submerge my soul with happiness 
Before the God of Gods it bless? 
SOLOMON IBN GABIROL. 
Tr. by I. Zangwill. 


Humorous, SATIRICAL, APHORISTIC VERSE 


One day I observed a grey hair in my head; 

I plucked it right out, when it thus to me said: 

“Thou mayest smile, if thou wilt, at thy treatment 
of me, 

But a score of my friends soon will make mock of 


thee.” 
JUDAH HA-LEVI. 


Tr. by J. Chotzner. 


E’en as the Turk abjures swine-flesh and wine, 

E’en as the sluggard hates his work to do, 

E’en as the unlovely woman doth decline 

Her imperfections in the glass to view; 

K’en as the maidens scorn the backward wight 

Who fails in eagerness his suit to press, 

E’en more than all, the grey-beard I detest, 

Who makes his love affairs his only quest. 
MANOELLO DiI ROMA. 

Tr. by J. Chotzner. 


He. “Why, Miranda, tell me why, 
When to me thou’rt talking, 
Thou dost watch with pensive sigh 
Young Adonis walking?” 


SCHULCHAN ARUCH 193 


She. “Thou hast taught me, that is why— 
Oft I have espied thee 
Glance at me with furtive eye, 
When my aunt’s beside me.” 


ABRAHAM IBN EZRA, 
Tr. by J. Chotzner. 


Yes, white is the colour of mourning, 
°T is Nature’s design, of a truth; 

My black hair turned white, when I started 
Lamenting the flight of my youth. 


JEHUDA ALCHARIZI. 
Tr. by J. Chotzner. 


My friend, speak always once, but listen twice, 
This I would have you know is sound advice: 
For God hath given you and all your peers 
A single mouth, but a pair of ears. 
PALQUERA. 
Tr. by J. Chotzner. 


Go not too frequently thy friends to see, 
Lest they grow weary of the sight of thee; 
When rain is scanty, then we pray for more, 
But love not one continuous downpour. 


ABRAHAM IBN CHASDAI. 
Tr. by J. Chotzner. 


The gift a noble soul may bring 
Is like the dew that heaven sows; 
It gently falls on hill and dale, 
But how it cometh no man knows. 


194 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


The promise of a wicked heart 
Is like unto the thunder peal, 
Lit by the lightning’s lurid flash 
With ne’er a drop of rain to heal. 
JEHUDA ALCHARIZI. 
Tr. by J. Chotzner. 


THE PATH OF THE RIGHTEOUS 
By Moses Chayim Luzzatto (1707-1747) 


ON THE PURPOSE OF LIFE 


The next world, not his existence here on earth, is 
man’s end and aim. His sojourn here is, to be sure, 
a means of reaching his final goal, the future world. 
Our sages accordingly never tire of portraying this 
world as the place and time of preparation, while 
the next is the place of rest and enjoyment. . . . On 
reasoned consideration, can any one really believe 
that man was created for the sake of this world? 
What is man’s life here? Who is really joyous and 
happy here on earth? Our life is seventy years and 
should the ripe age of eighty be attained (and the 
best is trouble and nothingness), with how much 
sorrow and disease and pain and unrest is it ac- 
companied! And then comes death! Among thou- 
sands one will not be found whom this world has 
given true joy and happiness, and even he, should 
he reach the age of one hundred, becomes dull and 
departs from this world. 


ON WATCHFULNESS 


If man has the knowledge and the reason to save 
himself and his soul from destruction, how shall he 
close an eye before saving himself? That were the 
greatest folly, and in so dealing he would place him- 

195 


196 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 
self lower than the beasts which seek to protect 
themselves instinctively and which therefore avoid 
and flee from all things harmful. . . . In short, ex- 
amine all your actions, watch your ways, that you 
have no evil habit, no evil characteristic, that you go 
about laden with no sin. 


On ZEAL 


Zeal follows watchfulness. Watchfulness is the 

negative, zeal the positive side of the commandments. 
Both are the fulfilment of the maxim: Avoid evil 
and do good. So the essence of zeal is established 
with ease; as rapidly as possible to fulfill the com- 
mandments, to effect their accomplishment. . 
In the gross earth does the material part (of man) 
originate and so he does not long for toil and labor. 
Therefore he who desires to place himself in the 
service of God must fortify himself against his own 
nature, must struggle against it with holy zeal. 


On INTEGRITY 


We describe that man as possessing integrity who 
holds himself free of every evil characteristic, of 
every sin. It does not suffice that he be free of a 
sin that is quite clear and recognizable; every inner 
impulse must also be absent which considers that 
permissible which cannot pass a real test, which is 
recognized by a real test as an outflow of passion 
from a heart not yet wholly purified, and which is 
therefore taken lightly. 

One who has had much exercise in watchfulness 
and so has attained the first degree of integrity, pur- 
ity from manifest sins, one who has accustomed 
himself to zeal in the service of God, developing in 


THE PATH OF THE RIGHTEOUS 1097 


his heart a great longing for the Creator, is, then, 
by virtue of this exercise, more and more drawn 
from the earthly, directs the mind evermore towards 
earthly completion, and finally attains complete in- 
tegrity. It extinguishes the fire of earthly passion in 
the heart. 


SEVERAL MAXIMS FOR THE MAN OF INTEGRITY 


Whosoever has hired himself to labor for another 
has sold him all his time for the day. 

All efforts to show a purchaser truthfully how good 
and fair an object is are only right and praiseworthy. 
But whatever serves to conceal a defect in an object 
—that is over-reaching and is forbidden. Such is 
the leading principle for him who wishes to conduct 
himself honestly in business. 

Do not harm or injure your neighbor by a single 
word. 

Against your better knowledge, give not bad 
counsel. 

You shall not hate; neither shall you bear a grudge. 

Whosoever lies undermines the foundation of the 
world. 

ON ABSTINENCE 


Abstinence is the first step to piety. . . . Ab- 
stinence stands in the same relation to piety as 
watchfulness to zeal; it is the negative side “Avoid 
evil” in relation to the positive “Do good.” The 
essence of abstinence is stated in the maxim of our 
sages: “Be holy also in that which is permitted thee.” 
And that is quite peculiarly the meaning of the word 
“Abstinence.” It means holding oneself back and 
far from a thing, forbidding oneself the permitted, 
so as not to reach the point where the really forbid- 


198 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


den may be transgressed. It is, essentially, to avoid 
and keep from everything from which evil might 
come, although it has not yet come shoal is not really 
evil in itself. 

On Purity 


Purity consists in perfecting the innermost emo- 
tions of the heart. 
On PIETY 


There are people who have brought piety into dis- 
repute both among the crowd and among those of 
understanding. These people believe that piety con- 
sists in empty things, such as are against reason and 
against clear thinking. They believe that piety con- 
sists in nothing but much prayer, lengthy confessions 
of sin, loud weeping, bending very low, mortification 
in which the body is deadened, and similar things. 
Some of the practices mentioned are indeed to be 
performed by the repentant sinner and by those who 
exercise the virtue of abstinence. But all this—and 
just these people do not understand this—by no 
means forms the foundation of piety. Whatever is 
good in the above-mentioned forms of religious prac- 
tice, is to be recommended as a concomitant of piety; 
but whoever desires to know the very essence of piety 
must go much deeper. 

Whoever is bound to God by the bonds of love will 
regard the commandments as indications from which » 
he determines whither the will and wish of God aim. 
He does not say: I content myself with what has 
been expressly stated, I perform the duty which has 
been laid upon me. On the contrary, he says: Since 
I have clearly perceived that God’s will aims thither, 
let it be an indication to me to proceed further in 
this thing, to perform it in every way which may 


THE PATH OF THE RIGHTEOUS 199 
be assumed to correspond to the will of God. That 
means giving joy to the Creator. 

Thus the essence of piety lies in an enlarged per- 
formance of the commandments, in every way, in 
every possible way. 


On HOLINESS 


It has not been given to man to reach this high 
stage by his own power. It is too difficult, since his 
body is but flesh and blood. Therefore I think that 
in the end holiness is a free gift of God. Man can 
but apply all his effort to absorbing himself with 
all his energy and unceasingly in the true essence and 
concept of holy conduct. Then God enters and 
smooths the path upon which he wishes to travel 
and lets His holiness rest upon him and consecrates 
him. 


WISDOM OF SPINOZA, 1632 
KNOWLEDGE OF GoD 


The following question might perhaps be asked: 
Since there is no possibility of obtaining a knowledge 
of the true essence of God, and since it has also been 
proved that the only thing that man can apprehend 
of Him is the fact that He exists, and that all posi- 
tive attributes are inadmissible, as has been shown, 
what is the difference among those who have ob- 
tained a knowledge of God? Must not the know- 
ledge obtained by our teacher, Moses, and by 
Solomon be the same as that obtained by any one 
of the lowest class of philosophers, since there can 
be no addition to this knowledge? But, on the other 
hand, it is generally accepted among theologians and 
also among philosophers, that there can be a great 
difference between two persons as regards the know- 
ledge of God obtained by them. Know that this is 
really the case, that those who have obtained a 
knowledge of God differ greatly from each other; 
for in the same way as by each additional attribute 
an object is more specified, and is brought nearer 
to the true apprehension of the observer, so by each 
additional negative attribute you advance toward the 
knowledge of God, and you are nearer to it than he 
who does not negative, in reference to God, those 
qualities which you are convinced by proof must 
be negatives. There may thus be a man who after 
having earnestly devoted many years to the pursuit 

200 





BARUCH SPINOZA 
Born in Amsterdam, 1632—Died 1677 


The Great Philosopher and Noted Hebrew Writer 





WISDOM OF SPINOZA pent 


of one science, and to the true understanding of its 
principles, till he is fully convinced of its truths, has 
obtained as the sole result of this study the convic- 
tion that a certain quality must be negatived in 
reference to God, and the capacity of demonstrating 
that it is impossible to apply it to Him. 

Superficial thinkers will have no proof for this, 
will doubtfully ask, Is that thing existing in the Cre- 
ator, or not? And those who are deprived of sight 
will positively ascribe it to God, although it has been 
clearly shown that He does not possess it. E.g., while 
I show that God is incorporeal, others even positively 
declare that He is corporeal, and appear before the 
Lord with that belief. Now see how great the dif- 
ference is between these three men; the first is un- 
doubtedly nearest to the Almighty; the second is 
remote, and the third still more distant from Him. 
If there be a fourth person who holds himself con- 
vinced by proof that emotions are impossible in God, 
while the first, who rejects the corporeality, is not 
convinced of that impossibility, that fourth person is 
undoubtedly nearer the knowledge of God than the 
first, and so on, so that a person who, convinced by 
proof, negatives a number of things in reference to 
God, which according to our belief may possibly be 
in Him or emanate from Him, is undoubtedly a more 
perfect man than we are, and would surpass us still 
more if we positively believed these things to be 
properties of God. It will now be clear to you that 
every time you establish by proof the negation of a 
thing in reference to God, you become more perfect, 
while with every additional positive assertion you 
follow your imagination and recede from the true 
knowledge of God. Only by such ways must we 
approach the knowledge of God, and by such re- 


202 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


searches and studies as would show us the inapplica- 
bility of what is inadmissible as regards the Creator, 
not by such methods as would prove the necessity 
of ascribing to Him anything extraneous to His es- 
sence, or asserting that He has a certain perfection, 
when we find it to be a perfection in relation to us. 
The perfections are all to some extent acquired prop- 
erties, and a property which must be acquired does 
not exist in everything capable of making such ac- 
quisition. | 

You must bear in mind that by affirming anything 
of God, you are removed from Him in two respects; 
first, whatever you affirm is only a perfection in 
relation to us; secondly, He does not possess anything 
superadded to this essence; His essence includes 
all His perfections, as we have shown. Since it is 
a well-known fact that even that knowledge of God 
which is accessible to man cannot be attained except 
by negations, and that negations do not convey a 
true idea of the being to which they refer, all people, 
both of past and present generations, declared that 
God cannot be the object of human comprehension, 
that none but Himself comprehends what He is, and 
that our knowledge consists in knowing that we are 
unable truly to comprehend Him. All philosophers 
say, “He has overpowered us by His grace, and is 
invisible to us through the intensity of His light,” 
like the sun which cannot be perceived by eyes which 
are too weak to bear its rays. Much more has been 
said on this topic, but it is useless to repeat it here. 
The idea is best expressed in the book of Psalms, 
“Silence is praise to Thee” (Ixv. 2). It is a very ex- 
pressive remark on this subject; for whatever we 
utter with the intention of extolling and of praising 
Him contains something that cannot be applied to 


WISDOM OF SPINOZA 203 


God, and includes derogatory expressions; it is there- 
fore more becoming to be silent, and to be content 
with intellectual reflection, as has been recom- 
mended by men of the highest culture, in the words 
“Commune with your own heart upon your bed, and 
be still” (Ps. iv. 4). You must surely know the fol- 
lowing celebrated passage in the Talmud—would 
that all passages in the Talmud were like that!— 
although it is known to you, I quote it literally, as 
I wish to point out to you the ideas contained in it: 
“A certain person, reading prayers in the presence 
of Rabbi Haninah, said, ‘God, the great, the valiant 
and the tremendous, the powerful, the strong, and 
the mighty.’ The rabbi said to him, ‘Have you fin- 
ished all the praises of your Master?’ The three 
epithets, ‘God, the great, the valiant and the tre- 
mendous, we should not have applied to God, had 
Moses not mentioned them in the Law, and had not 
the men of the Great Synagogue come forward sub- 
sequently and established their use in the prayer; 
and you say all this! Let this be illustrated by a 
parable. There was once an earthly king, possessing 
millions of gold coin; he was praised for owning 
millions of silver coin; was this not really dispraise 
to him?” 

Thus far the opinion of the pious rabbi. Consider, 
first, how repulsive and annoying the accumulation 
of all these positive attributes was to him; next, how 
he showed that, if we had only to follow our reason, 
we should never have composed these prayers, and 
we should not have uttered any of them. It has, 
however, become necessary to address men in words 
that should leave some idea in their minds, and, in 
accordance with the saying of our sages, “The Torah 
speaks in the language of men,” the Creator has been 


204 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


described to us in terms of our own perfections; but 
we should not on that account have uttered any other 
than the three above-mentioned attributes, and we 
should not have used them as names of God except 
when meeting with them in reading the Law. Sub- 
sequently, the men of the Great Synagogue, who were 
prophets, introduced these expressions also into the 
prayer, but we should not on that account use (in 
our prayers) any other attributes of God. The 
principal lesson to be derived from this passage is 
that there are two reasons for our employing those 
phrases in our prayers: first, they occur in the Penta- 
teuch; secondly, the Prophets introduced them into 
the prayer. Were it not for the first reason, we 
should never have uttered them; and were it not for 
the second reason, we should not have copied them 
from the Pentateuch to recite them in our prayers; 
how then could we approve of the use of those nu- 
merous attributes? You also learn from this that 
we ought not to mention and employ in our prayers 
all the attributes we find applied to God in the books 
of the Prophets; for he does not say, “Were it not 
that Moses, our teacher, said them, we should not 
have been able to use them”; but he adds another 
condition—“and had not the men of the Great Syna- 
gogue come forward and established their use in the 
prayer,” because only for that reason are we allowed 
to use them in our prayers. We cannot approve of 
what those foolish persons do who are extravagant 
in praise, fluent and prolix in the prayers they com- 
pose, and in the hymns they make in the desire to 
approach the Creator. They describe God in attri- 
butes which would be an offense if applied to a 
human being; for those persons have no knowledge 
of these great and important principles, which are 


WISDOM OF SPINOZA 205 


not accessible to the ordinary intelligence of man. 
Treating the Creator as a familiar object, they de- 
scribe Him and speak of Him in any expressions they 
think proper; they eloquently continue to praise 
Him in that manner, and believe that they can there- 
by influence Him and produce an effect on Him. If 
they find some phrase suited to their object in the 
words of the Prophets they are still more inclined 
to consider that they are free to make use of such 
texts—which should at least be explained—to em- 
ploy them in their literal sense, to derive new 
expressions from them, to form from them numerous 
variations, and to found whole compositions on them. 
This license is frequently met with in the composi- 
tions of the singers, preachers, and others who im- 
agine themselves to be able to compose a poem. Such 
authors write things which partly are real heresy, 
partly contain such folly and absurdity that they 
naturally cause those who hear them to laugh, but 
also to feel grieved at the thought that such things 
can be uttered in reference to God. Were it not that 
I pitied the authors for their defects, and did not wish 
to injure them, I should have cited some passages 
to show you their mistakes; besides, the fault of their 
compositions is obvious to all intelligent persons. 
You must consider it, and think thus: If slander and 
libel are great sins, how much greater is the sin of 
those who speak with looseness of tongue in reference 
to God, and describe Him by attributes which are far 
below Him; and I declare that they not only com- 
mit an ordinary sin, but unconsciously at least incur 
the guilt of profanity and blasphemy. This applies 
both to the multitude that listens to such prayers 
and to the foolish man that recites them. Men, how- 
ever, who understand the fault of such conpositions, 


206 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


and, nevertheless, recite them, may be classed, ac- 
cording to my opinion, among those to whom the 
following words are applied: “And the children of 
Israel used words that were not right against the 
Lord their God” (2 Kings xvii. 9); and “utter error 
against the Lord” (Isa. xxxii. 6). If you are of those 
who regard the honor of their Creator, do not listen 
in any way to them, much less utter what they say, 
and still less compose such prayers, knowing how 
great is the offense of one who. hurls aspersions 
against the Supreme Being. There is no necessity at 
all for you to use positive attributes of God with the 
view of magnifying Him in your thoughts, or to go 
beyond the limits which the men of the Great Syna- 
gogue have introduced in the prayers and in the 
blessings, for this is sufficient for all purposes, and 
even more than sufficient, as Rabbi Haninah said. 
Other attributes, such as occur in the books of the 
Prophets, may be uttered, when we meet with them 
in reading those books; but we must bear in mind 
what has already been explained, that they are either 
attributes of God’s actions, or expressions implying 
the negation of the opposite. This likewise should 
not be divulged to the multitude; but a reflection of 
this kind is fitted for the few only who believe that 
the glorification of God does not consist in uttering 
that which is not to be uttered, but in reflecting on 
that on which man should reflect. : 

We will now conclude our exposition of the wise 
words of R. Haninah. He does not employ any such 
simile as: “A king who possesses millions of gold 
denarii, and is praised as having hundreds”; for this 
would imply that God’s perfections, although more 
perfect than those ascribed to man, are still of the 
same kind; but this is not the case, as has been 


WISDOM OF SPINOZA 207 


proved. The excellence of the simile consists in the 
words “who possesses golden denarii and is praised 
as having silver denarii”; this implies that these at- 
tributes, though perfections as regards ourselves, are 
not such as regards God; in reference to Him they 
would all be defects, as is distinctly suggested in the 
remark “Is this not an offense to Him?” 

I have already told you that all these attributes, 
whatever perfection they may denote according to 
your idea, imply defects in reference to God, if ap- 
plied to Him in the same sense as they are used in 
reference to ourselves. Solomon has already given 
us sufficient instruction on this subject by saying, 
“For God is in heaven, and thou upon earth; there- 
fore let thy words be few” (Eccles. v. 2). 


CONCERNING GoD 


As certain things must have been produced im- 
mediately by God, for example those things which 
necessarily follow from His absolute nature, by 
means of these first causes, which nevertheless can- 
not exist nor even be conceived without God, it 
follows that God is the proximate cause of those 
things immediately produced by Him, absolutely, 
not, as some would have it, in His kind. For the 
effects of God cannot exist or be conceived without 
their cause. It follows, again, that God cannot be 
said in truth to be the remote cause of individual 
things unless we would thus distinguish these from 
the things which are immediately produced by God, 
or rather which follow from His absolute nature. 
For we understand by a remote cause one which is 
in no wise connected with its effect. But all things 
which are are in God, and so depend on God that 
without Him they can neither exist nor be conceived. 


208 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


Whatever is is in God. But God cannot be called 
a contingent thing, for He exists of necessity and not 
contingently. Again, the modes of divine nature do 
not follow from it contingently, but of necessity and 
that either in so far as divine nature be considered 
absolutely or as determined for certain action. Now 
God is the cause of these modes, not only in so far 
as they simply exist, but also in so far as they are 
considered as determined for the working of any- 
thing. For if they are not determined by God, it is 
impossible, not contingent indeed, that they should 
determine themselves; and on the other hand, if they 
are determined by God, it is impossible and in no 
wise contingent for them to render themselves un- 
determined. Wherefore all things are determined 
by the necessity of divine nature, not only for exist- 
ing, but also for existing and working after a certain 
manner, and nothing contingent is granted. 

A true idea must agree with its ideal—that is (as 
is self-evident), that which is contained in the intel- 
lect objectively must of necessity be granted in 
nature. But in nature only one substance can be 
granted, and that is God, and only such modifica- 
tions can be granted as are in God and cannot exist 
or be conceived without God. Therefore, intellect, 
finite or infinite in actuality, must comprehend the 
attributes and modifications of God and nothing else. 

Since ability to exist is power, it follows that the 
more reality anything in nature has, the more power 
it will have to exist; and accordingly a being abso- 
lutely infinite, or God, has an absolutely infinite 
power of existence from itself, and on that account 
absolutely exists. Many, however, perhaps will not 
be able to see the truth of this proof easily, because 
they are accustomed to look at and consider things 


WISDOM OF SPINOZA 209 


which flow from external causes and of these, those 
which are quickly made, that is, which exist easily, 
they see perish easily; and on the other hand, they 
judge those things to be harder to make, i.e., not ex- 
isting so easily, to which they find more attributes 
belong. But, in truth, to deliver them from these 
prejudices I need not show here in what manner or 
by what reason this statement, “that which is quickly 
made perishes speedily,” is true, nor even, in con- 
sidering the whole of nature, whether all things are 
equally difficult or not; but it suffices to note that 
I do not speak here of things which are made from 
external causes, but of substances alone which can- 
not be produced from any external cause. For those 
things which are made from external causes, whether 
they consist of many parts or few, whatever perfec- 
tion or reality they have, it is all there by reason 
of their external cause, and therefore their existence 
arises merely from the perfection of some external 
cause and not their own. On the other hand, what- 
ever perfection a substance may have is due to no 
external cause, wherefore its existence must follow 
from its nature alone, which is nothing else than its 
essence. Perfection, then, does not take existence 
from a thing, but on the contrary, gives it existence; 
but imperfection, on the other hand, takes it away, 
and so we cannot be more certain of the existence 
of anything than of the existence of a being abso- 
lutely infinite or perfect, that is, God. Now since His 
essence excludes all imperfection and involves abso- 
lute perfection, by that very fact it removes all cause 
of doubt concerning His existence and makes it most 
certain: which will be manifest, I think, to such as 
pay it the least attention. 

Some think that God is a free cause because they 


210 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


think He can bring it to pass that those things which 
we say follow from His nature, that is, which are in 
His power, should not be made, or that they should 
not be produced by Him. But this is the same as if 
they said that God can bring it to pass that it should 
not follow from the nature of a triangle that its three 
angles are equal to two right angles, or that from 
a given cause no effect should follow, which is absurd. 
For further on, without the aid of this proposition, 
I shall show that intellect and will do not appertain 
to the nature of God. I am well aware that there 
are many who say they can show that the greatest 
intellect and free will appertain to the nature of God: 
for they say they know nothing more perfect to at- 
tribute to God than that which among us is the 
greatest perfection. Further, although they conceive 
God’s intellect as having the greatest perception of 
things in action, yet they do not believe that He can 
bring about the existence of everything which His 
intellect perceives in action; for they think they 
would thus destroy the power of God. They say that 
if He were to create everything that His intellect 
perceives, He would then not be able to create any- 
thing more, which they think opposed to the om- 
nipotence of God; and accordingly they prefer to 
state that God is indifferent to all things, and creates 
nothing else than that which He determines to create 
by His own free will. God’s supreme power or in- 
finite nature, infinite things in infinite modes, that is, 
all things, necessarily flow, or always follow from 
the same necessity; in the same manner it also fol- 
lows from the nature of a triangle from eternity to 
eternity that the three angles will be equal to the 
two right angles. Wherefore God’s omnipotence was 
in action from eternity, and will remain in the same 


WISDOM OF SPINOZA 211 
state of action through all eternity. And in this 
manner, in my opinion, the perfection of God’s 
omnipotence is asserted to be far greater. On the 
other hand, the opponents of God seem to deny (to 
speak freely) His omnipotence. For they are obliged 
to confess that God’s intellect perceives many things 
that could be created which nevertheless He cannot 
ever create. For, in other words, if He created all 
that His intellect perceived, He would, according to 
them, exhaust His omnipotence and render Himself 
imperfect. As, therefore, they say that God is per- 
fect, they are reduced to state at the same time that 
He cannot complete all those things to which His 
power extends; and anything more absurd than this 
or more opposed to the omnipotence of God I can- 
not imagine could be conceived. Moreover (as I 
would like to say something concerning the intellect 
and will which we commonly attribute to God), if 
intellect and will appertain to the eternal essence 
of God, something far else must be understood by 
these two attributes than what is commonly under- 
stood by men. For intellect and will, which would 
constitute the essence of God, must differ toto coelo 
from our will and intellect, nor can they agree in 
anything save name, nor any more than the dog, as 
a heavenly body, and the dog, as a barking animal, 
agree. This I shall show in the following manner. 
If intellect appertains to divine nature, it cannot, as 
with our intellect, be posterior or even simultaneous 
in nature with the things conceived by the intellect 
(as many would have it), since God is prior in cause 
alike to all things; but on the other hand, truth and 
the formal essence of things are such, because they 
so exist objectively in God’s intellect. Wherefore 
the intellect of God, as far as it can be conceived 


212 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


to form His essence, is in truth the cause of things, 
both of their essence and their existence; which 
seems to have been noticed by those who have as- 
serted that God’s intellect, will, and power are one 
and the same thing. Now as God’s intellect is the 
only cause of things, i.e., the cause both of their 
essence and their existence, it must therefore neces- 
sarily differ from them in respect to its essence and 
in respect to its existence. For that which is caused 
differs from its cause precisely in that which it has 
from its cause. E.g., a man is the cause of existence 
but not the cause of essence of another man (for 
the latter is an eternal truth); and so they can cer- 
tainly agree in essence, but in existence they must 
differ, and on that account if the existence of one 
of them perish, that of the other does not conse- 
quently perish; but if the essence of one of them 
could be destroyed or be made false, the essence of 
the other must also be destroyed. On this account 
a thing that is the cause of the essence and existence 
of any effect must differ from that effect both in re- 
spect to its essence and in respect to its existence. 
Now the intellect of God is the cause of the essence 
and existence of our intellect; and therefore God’s 
intellect, in so far as it can be conceived to form 
part of His essence, differs from our intellect both 
in respect to its essence and in respect to its ex- 
istence, nor in any other thing save name can agree 
with it, which we wished to prove. And the argu- 
ment concerning will would proceed in the same 
manner, as can easily be seen. 

As soon as men had persuaded themselves that all 
things which were made were made for their sakes, 
they were bound to consider as the best quality in 
everything that which was the most useful to them, 


WISDOM OF SPINOZA 213 


and to esteem that above all things which brought 
them the most good. Hence, they must have formed 
these notions by which they explain the things of 
nature, to wit, good, evil, order, confusion, hot, cold, 
beauty, and ugliness, etc.; and as they deemed them- 
selves free agents, the notions of praise and blame, 
sin and merit, arose. The latter notions I will dis- 
cuss when I deal with human nature later on, but 
the former are to be discussed now. They call all 
that which is conducive of health and the worship 
of God good, and all which is conducive of the con- 
trary, evil. And forasmuch as those who do not 
understand the things of nature are certain of 
nothing concerning those things, but only imagine 
» them and mistake their imagination for intellect, 
they firmly believe there is order in things, and are 
ignorant of them and their own nature. Now when 
things are so disposed that when they are represented 
to us through our senses we can easily imagine and 
consequently easily remember them, we call them 
well-ordered; and on the other hand, when we can- 
not do so, we call them ill-ordered or confused. Now 
forasmuch as those things, above all others, are 
pleasing to us which we can easily imagine, men 
accordingly prefer order to confusion, as if order 
were anything in nature save in respect to our im- 
agination; and they say that God has created all 
things in order, and thus unwittingly they attribute 
imagination to God, unless indeed they would have 
that God providing for human imagination disposed 
all things in such a manner as would be most easy for 
our imagination; nor would they then find it perhaps 
a stumbling-block to their theory that infinite things 
are found which are far beyond the reach of our 
imagination, and many which confuse it through its 


214 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS } 
weakness. But of this I have said enough. The other 
notions also are nothing other than modes of im- 
agining in which the imagination is affected in 
diverse manners, and yet they are considered by the 
ignorant as very important attributes of things; for 
as we have said, they think all things were made for 
them, and call their natures good or bad, healthy or 
rotten, and corrupt, according as they are affected 
by them. £.g., if motion, which the nerves receive 
by means of the eyes from objects before us, is con- 
ducive of health, those objects by which it is caused 
are called beautiful; if it is not, then the objects are 
called ugly. Such things as affect the nerves by 
means of the nose are thus styled fragrant or evil- 
smelling; or when by means of the mouth, sweet or 
bitter, tasty or insipid; when by means of touch, hard 
or soft, rough or smooth, etc. And such things as 
affect the ear are called noises, and form discord 
or harmony, the last of which has delighted men to 
madness, so that they have believed that harmony 
delights God. Nor have there been wanting philoso- 
phers who assert that the movements of the heavenly 
spheres compose harmony. All of which sufficiently 
show that each one judges concerning things accord- 
ing to the disposition of his own mind, or rather takes 
for things that which is really the modifications of 
his imagination. Wherefore it is not remarkable 
(as we may incidentally remark) that so many con- 
troversies as we find have arisen among men, and 
at last Skepticism. For although human bodies 
agree in many points, yet in many others they differ, 
and that which seems to one good may yet to another 
seem evil; to one order, yet to another confusion; 
to one pleasing, yet to another displeasing, and so on, 
for I need not treat further of these, as this is not 


WISDOM OF SPINOZA 215 


the place to discuss them in detail, and indeed they 
must be sufficiently obvious to all. For it is in every 
one’s mouth: “As many minds as men,” “Each is 
wise in his own manner,” “As tastes differ, so do 
minds”—all of which proverbs show clearly enough 
that men judge things according to the disposition 
of their minds, and had rather imagine things than 
understand them. For if they understood things, 
my arguments would convince them at least, just as 
mathematics, although they might not attract them. 

We have thus seen that all the arguments by which 
the vulgar are wont to explain nature are nothing 
else than modes of imagination, and indicate the 
nature of nothing whatever, but only the constitution 
of the imagination; and although they have names 
as if they were entities existing outside the imagina- 
tion, I call them entities, not of reality, but of the 
imagination; and so all arguments directed against 
us from such notions can easily be returned. For 
many are wont thus to argue: If all things have fol- 
lowed from the necessity of the most perfect nature 
of God, whence have so many imperfections in 
nature arisen? For example, the corruption of things 
even to rottenness, the ugliness of things which often 
nauseate, confusion, evil, sin, etc. But as I have just 
said, these are easily confuted. For the perfection 
of things is estimated solely from their nature and 
power; nor are things more or less perfect accord- 
ing as they delight or disgust human senses, or ac- 
cording as they are useful or useless to men. But 
to those who ask, “Why did not God create all men 
in such a manner that they might be governed by 
reason alone?” I make no answer but this: because 
material was not wanting to Him for the creating of 
all things from the highest grade to the lowest; or 


216 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


speaking more accurately, because the laws of His 
nature were so comprehensive as to suffice for the 
creation of everything that infinite intellect can con- 
ceive, as I have shown. These are the misunder- 
standings which I stopped here to point out. If any 
grains of them still remain, they can be easily dis- 
persed by means of a little reflection. 


THE Bopy 


No one has thus far determined what the body 
can do, or no one has yet been taught by experience 
what the body can do merely by the laws of nature, 
in so far as nature is considered merely as corporeal 
or extended, and what it cannot do, save when de- 
termined by the mind. For no one has yet had a 
sufficiently accurate knowledge of the construction 
of the human body as to be able to explain all its 
functions; nor need I be silent concerning many 
things which are observed in brutes which far sur- 
pass human sagacity, and many things which sleep- 
walkers do which they would not dare, were they 
awake; all of which sufficiently shows that the body 
can do many things by the laws of its nature alone 
at which the mind is amazed. Again, no one knows 
in what manner, or by what means, the mind moves 
the body, nor how many degrees of motion it can 
give to the body, nor with what speed it can move 
it. Whence it follows when men say that this or 
that action arises from the mind which has power 
over the body, they know not what they say, or con- 
fess with specious words that they are ignorant of 
the cause of the said action, and have no wonder- 
ment at it. But they will say whether they know or 
not by what means the mind moves the body, that 
they have discovered by experience that, unless the 


WISDOM OF SPINOZA 217 


mind is apt for thinking, the body remains inert; 
again, that it is in the power of the mind alone to 
speak or be silent, and many other things which are 
dependent solely on the will of the mind. But as for 
the first point, I ask them whether experience has not 
also taught them that when the body is inert the 
mind likewise is inept for thinking? For when the 
body is asleep, the mind, at the same time, remains 
unconscious, and has not the power of thinking that 
it has when awake. Again, I think all have found 
by experience that the mind is not always equally 
apt for thinking out its subject; but according as 
the body is more apt, so that the image of this or 
that object may cause more excitement in it, so the 
mind is more apt for regarding the object. But they 
will say that it cannot come to pass that from the 
laws of nature alone, in so far as nature is regarded 
as extended, that the causes of buildings, pictures, 
and things of this kind, which are made by human 
skill alone, can be deduced, nor can the human body, 
save if it be determined and led thereto by the mind, 
build a temple, for example. But I have already 
shown that they know not what a body is, or what 
can be deduced from mere contemplation, and that 
they themselves have experienced many things which 
happen merely by reason of the laws of nature, which 
they would never have believed to happen save by 
the direction of the mind, as those things which 
sleep-walkers do at which they would be surprised 
were they awake; and I may here draw attention to 
the fabric of the human body, which far surpasses 
any piece of work made by human art, to say noth- 
ing of what I have already shown, namely, that from 
nature, considered under whatsoever attribute, in- 
finite things follow. As for their second point, surely 


218 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


human affairs would be far happier if the power in 
men to be silent were the same as that to speak. 
But experience more than sufficiently teaches that 
men govern nothing with more difficulty than their 
tongues, and can moderate their desires more easily 
than their words. Whence it comes about that many 
believe that we are free in respect only to those 
things which we desire only moderately, for then we 
can restrain our desire for those things by the recol- 
lection of something else which we frequently recol- 
lect: and with respect to those things which we desire 
with such affection that nothing can obliterate them 
from the mind we are by no means free. But in 
truth, if they did not experience that we do many 
things for which we are sorry afterwards, and that 
very often when we strive with adverse emotions we 
“see the better, yet follow the worse,” there would be 
nothing to prevent them from believing that we do 
all things freely. Thus an infant thinks that it freely 
desires milk, an angry child thinks that it freely de- 
sires vengeance, or a timid child thinks it freely 
chooses flight. Again, a drunken man thinks that he 
speaks from the free will of the mind those things 
which, were he sober, he would keep to himself. 
Thus a madman, a talkative woman, a child, and 
people of such kind think they speak by the free 
decision of the mind, when, in truth, they cannot put 
a stop to the desire to talk, just as experience teaches 
as clearly as reason that men think themselves free 
on account of this alone, that they are conscious of 
their actions and ignorant of the causes of them; 
and moreover that the decisions of the mind are 
nothing save their desires, which are accordingly 
various according to various dispositions. For each 
one moderates all his actions according to his emo- 


WISDOM OF SPINOZA 219 


tion, and thus those who are assailed by conflicting 
emotions know not what they want; those who are 
assailed by none are easily driven to one or the other. 
Now all these things clearly show that the decision 
of the mind and the desire and determination of the 
body are simultaneous in nature, or rather one and 
the same thing, which when considered under the 
attribute of thought and explained through the same 
we call decision (decretum), and when considered 
under the attribute of extension and deduced from 
the laws of motion and rest we call determination 
(determinatio), which will appear more clearly from 
what will be said on the subject. For there is another 
point which I wish to be noted specially here, namely, 
that we can do nothing by a decision of the mind 
unless we recollect having done so before, e.g., we 
cannot speak a word unless we recollect having done 
so. Again, it is not within the free power of the 
mind to remember or forget anything. Wherefore 
it must only be thought within the free power of the 
mind in so far as we can keep to ourselves or speak 
according to the decision of the mind the thing we 
recollect. For when we dream that we speak, we 
think that we speak from the free decision of the 
mind, yet we do not speak, or if we do, it is due to 
a spontaneous motion of the body. We dream again 
that we conceal something from men, and think that 
we do so by the same decision of the mind as that 
by which, when we are awake, we are silent con- 
cerning what we know. In the third place, we dream 
that we do certain things by a decision of the mind 
which were we awake we would dare not; and there- 
fore I should like to know whether there are in the 
mind two sorts of decisions, fantastic and free? But 
if our folly is not so great as that, we must neces- 


220 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 
sarily admit that this decision of the mind, which 
is thought to be free, cannot be distinguished from 
imagination or memory, nor is it anything else than 
the affirmation which an idea, in so far as it is an 
idea, necessarily involves. And therefore these de- 
crees of the mind arise in the mind from the same 
necessity as the ideas of things actually existing. 
Those, therefore, who believe that they speak, are 
silent, or do anything from the free decision of the 
mind, dream with their eyes open. 


THE MIND 


I begin then with the first point, and warn the 
readers to make an accurate distinction between 
idea, or a conception of the mind, and the images 
of things which we imagine. Then it is necessary 
to distinguish between ideas and words by which we 
point out things. For these three, namely, images, 
words, and ideas, are by most people either entirely 
confused or not distinguished with sufficient ac- 
curacy or care, and hence they are entirely ignorant 
of the fact that to know this doctrine of the will is 
highly necessary both for philosophic speculation 
and for the wise ordering of life. Those who think 
that ideas consist of images which are formed in us 
by the concourse of bodies, persuade themselves that 
those ideas of things like which we can form no 
image in the mind are not ideas, but fabrications 
which we invent by our own free will; they there- 
fore regard ideas as lifeless pictures on a board, and 
preoccupied thus with this misconception they do not 
see that an idea, in so far as it is an idea, involves 
affirmation or negation. Then those who confuse 
words with the ideas, or with the affirmation which 
the idea involves, think that they can wish some- 


WISDOM OF SPINOZA 221 
thing contrary to what they feel, when they affirm 
or deny anything by mere words against what they 
feel. Any one can easily rid himself of these mis- 
conceptions if he pays attention to the nature of 
thought which least involves the conception of ex- 
tension; and therefore he will clearly understand 
that an idea (since it is a mode of thinking) does 
not consist in the image of anything nor in words. 
For the essence of words and images is constituted 
solely by bodily motions which least involve the con- 
ception of thought. 

These few warnings, I think, will suffice. I shall 
now pass on to the objections I mentioned. The 
first of these is that they take it for an axiom that 
the will can be further extended than the intellect, 
and is therefore different from it. But the reason 
why they think that the will can be further extended 
than the intellect is, they say, that they find we do 
not need a greater faculty of assenting or of affirm- 
ing and denying than we have now in order to assent 
to infinite other things which we do not preceive, 
but that we do need a greater faculty of understand- 
ing. The will is then thus distinguished from the 
intellect, that the latter is finite and the former in- 
finite. The second objection to us is that experience 
seems to teach us nothing more clearly than that we 
can suspend our judgment in order not to assent to 
things which we perceive: that this is confirmed by 
the fact that no one is said to be deceived in so far 
as he perceives anything, but in so far as he assents 
or dissents to it. For example, he who feigns a 
winged horse does not thereby grant that there is 
such a thing as a winged horse, that is, he is not 
therefore deceived unless he admits at the same time 
that there is such a thing as a winged horse. There- 


222 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


fore experience seems to teach nothing more clearly 
than that will, or the faculty of assenting, is free, 
and different from the faculty of understanding. 
The third objection is that one affirmation does not 
seem to contain more reality than another, that is, 
we do not seem to need more power to affirm what 
is true to be true than to affirm what is false to be 
true. But we have seen that one idea contains more 
reality or perfection than another; for as some ob- 
jects are more excellent than others, so are some 
ideas more perfect than others; from this also may be 
inferred the difference between will and intellect. 
The fourth objection is: if man does not act from 
free will, what will happen if he remains in equilib- 
rium between incentives to action, like Buridan’s 
ass? Will he perish of hunger or thirst? If I admit 
that he will, I shall seem to have in my mind an ass 
or the statue of a man rather than an actual man; 
but if I deny it, he would then determine himself, 
and consequently would have the faculty of going 
and doing whatever he wished. Besides these, other 
objections may be raised; but as I am not obliged 
to make a demonstration of whatever any one can 
dream, I shall take the trouble of answering these 
objections, and that with great possible brevity. 
As for the first point, I concede that the will can be 
further extended than the intellect, if by intellect 
they only understand clear and distinct ideas; but 
I deny that the will can be further extended than the 
perceptions or the faculty of conceiving. Nor do I 
see how the faculty of willing should be called in- 
finite before the faculty of feeling, for just as we can 
by that faculty of willing affirm an infinite number 
of things (one after the other, for we cannot affirm 
an infinite number simultaneously), so also can we 


WISDOM OF SPINOZA 223 


by the faculty of feeling feel or perceive an infinite 
number of bodies (one after the other). Then if 
they say that there are an infinite number of bodies 
which we cannot perceive, I retort that we cannot 
attain to that number by any manner of thought, 
and consequently by any faculty of willing; but they 
say that if God wished to bring it to pass that we 
should perceive these things, he would have to give 
us a greater faculty of perceiving but not a greater 
faculty of willing than He gave us. This is the same 
as if they said that if God wished to bring it to pass 
that we should understand an infinite number of 
other entities, that it would be necessary that He 
should give us a greater intellect but not a more 
general idea of entity than He gave us before, in 
order to grasp such infinite entities. Now we have 
shown that will is a general being or idea whereby 
we explain all individual volitions, or that will is 
common to all volitions. And when they believe that 
this common or general idea of all volitions, it is 
not at all to be wondered at if they say that this 
faculty is extended beyond the limits of the intellect 
to infinity; for what is universal or general can be 
said alike of one, of many, and of infinite individuals. 
I answer the second objection by denying that we 
have free power to suspend the judgment. For when 
we say that any one suspends his judgment, we say 
nothing else than that he sees that he does not per- 
ceive the thing adequately. Therefore a suspension 
of the judgment is in truth a perception and not free 
will. To make this more clear, let us conceive a boy 
imagining a horse and perceiving nothing else. In- 
asmuch as this imagination involves the existence of 
the horse, and the boy does not perceive anything 
that could take away from the horse its existence, 


224 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


he will necessarily regard the horse as present, nor 
will he have any doubts of its existence, although 
he may not be certain of it. We have daily experi- 
ence of this in dreams, and I do not think there is 
any one who thinks that while he sleeps he has the 
free power of suspending his judgment concerning 
what he dreams, and of bringing it to pass that he 
should not dream what he dreams he sees; and yet 
it happens in dreams also that we can suspend our 
judgments, namely, when we dream that we dream. 
Further, I grant that no one is deceived in so far 
as he perceives, that is, I grant that the imaginations 
of the mind considered in themselves involve no 
error, but I deny that a man affirms nothing in so 
far as he perceives. For what else is it to perceive 
a winged horse than to affirm wings on a horse? 
For if the mind perceives nothing else save a winged 
horse, it will regard it as present to itself; nor will 
it have any reason for doubting its existence, nor 
any faculty of dissenting, unless the imagination of 
a winged horse be joined to an idea which removes 
existence from the horse, or unless he perceives that 
the idea of a winged horse that he has is inadequate, 
and then he will either necessarily deny the existence 
of the said horse or necessarily doubt it. And thus 
I think I have also answered the third objection, 
namely, that the will is something general, which is 
predicated of all ideas, and which only signifies that 
which is common to all ideas, namely, an affirmation 
whose adequate essence therefore, in so far as it is 
conceived abstractly, must be in each idea, and the 
same in all in this respect only; but not in so far 
as it is considered to constitute the idea’s essence: 
thus far individual affirmations differ one from the 
other equally as much as ideas. E.g., the affirma- 


WISDOM OF SPINOZA 225 


tion which is involved by the idea of a circle differs 
from that involved by the idea of a triangle just as 
the idea of a circle differs from the idea of a tri- 
angle. Then again, I absolutely deny that we need 
equal power of thought for affirming that what is 
true is true, than for affirming what is false is true. 
For these two affirmations, if we look to the mind, 
have the same reciprocal relation as a being to a 
non-being; for there is nothing positive in ideas 
which can constitute the form of falsity. It there- 
fore must be noted how easily we are deceived when 
we confuse general entities with individual ones, and 
abstract entities and those of reason with realities. 
As for the fourth objection, I confess that I am pre- 
pared to admit that a man placed in such a position 
of equilibrium (namely, that he perceives nothing 
save hunger and thirst, a certain food and a certain 
drink which are equally distant from him) will 
perish of hunger and thirst. If they ask whether I 
do not consider that such a man should rather be 
regarded as an ass than a man, I answer that I do 
not know, as also I do not know how a man should 
be regarded who hangs himself, or how children, 
fools, or madmen are to be considered. 

It remains that I should point out how much this 
doctrine confers advantage on us for the regulating 
of life, which we shall easily perceive from the fol- 
lowing points: I. Inasmuch as it teaches us to act 
solely according to the decree of God and to be par- 
takers of the divine nature, the more according as 
our actions are more perfect and more and more 
understand God. This doctrine, therefore, besides 
bringing complete peace to the mind, has this advan- 
tage also, that it teaches us in what consists our 
greatest happiness or blessedness, namely, in the 


226 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


knowledge of God, by which we are induced to do 
those things which love and piety persuade us. 
Whence we clearly understand how far those are 
astray from a true estimation of virtue who expect 
for their virtue and best actions, as if it were the 
greatest slavery, that God will adorn them with the 
greatest rewards; as if virtue and the serving of God 
were not the happiness itself and the greatest liberty. 
II. In so far as it teaches us in what manner we 
should act with regard to the affairs of fortune or 
those which are not in our own power, that is, with 
regard to those things which do not follow from our 
nature: namely, that we should expect and bear 
both faces of fortune with an equal mind; for all 
things follow by the eternal decree of God in the 
same necessity as it follows from the essence of a 
triangle that its three angles are equal to two right 
angles. III. This doctrine confers advantages on 
social life, inasmuch as it teaches us not to despise, 
hate, or ridicule any one; to be angry with or envy 
no one. Further, it teaches us that each one should 
be satisfied with what he has and ready to help his 
neighbour, not from effeminate pity or partiality or 
superstition, but by the mere guidance of reason, 
according as the time or thing demands. IV. Then 
this doctrine confers advantages on the state in 
common, inasmuch as it teaches in what manner 
citizens should be governed, namely, that they should 
not be as slaves, but should do of their own free will 
what is best. Thus I have fulfilled what I promised 
at the beginning of this note, and now come to the 
end of the second part, in which I think I have ex- 
plained the nature of the human mind and its 
properties at sufficient length, having regard to the 
difficulty of the subject, and that I have brought 


WISDOM OF SPINOZA 227 


with me many things from which excellent conclu- 
sions of great use and most necessary to be known 
may be drawn, as will be seen in part from what 
follows. 


THE EMOTIONS 


Human lack of power in moderating and checking 
the emotions I call servitude. For a man who is sub- 
missive to his emotions is not in power over him- 
self, but in the hands of fortune to such an extent 
that he is often constrained, although he may see 
what is better for him, to follow what is worse. I 
purpose accordingly in this part to show the reason 
for this, and what there is good and bad in the emo- 
tions. But before I begin I must preface something 
concerning perfection and imperfection, and then 
good and bad. 

He that determines to do anything, and finishes 
it, calls it perfect, and that not only himself, but any 
one else who rightly knows, or thinks he knows, the 
mind of the author of that work or his design. For 
example, if any one sees some work (which I sup- 
pose not yet finished), and knows that the design 
of the author of that work is to build a house, he 
will call that house imperfect, and, on the contrary, 
perfect as soon as he sees it brought to the finish 
which its author determined to give to it. But if any 
one sees some piece of work the like of which he 
had never seen, and does not know the mind of the 
artificer, he clearly will not know whether the work 
be perfect or not. This seems to have been the first 
meaning of these words. But afterwards, when men 
began to form general ideas and to think out gen- 
eral notions for houses, buildings, towers, etc., and 
to prefer certain notions to others, it came to pass 


228 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


that every one called that perfect which he saw to 
agree with the general notion which he had formed 
of that sort of thing, and, on the contrary, imperfect 
what he saw less agree with his general notion, al- 
though in the opinion of the artificer it might be 
correct. There seems to be no other reason that men 
should call natural things which are not made with 
human hands perfect or imperfect; for men are 
wont to form general notions of natural as well as 
artificial things, which they regard as models to 
which nature looks for guidance (for they think she 
does nothing without some end in view). When, 
therefore, they see something take place in nature 
which less agrees with the exemplary notion which 
they have of that kind of thing, they think that 
nature has been guilty of error and has gone astray 
to have left that thing imperfect. We see thus that 
men have been wont to call things of nature perfect 
or imperfect from prejudice rather than from a true 
knowledge, for we showed in the appendix of the 
first part that nature does not act with an end in 
view; for that eternal and infinite being we call God 
or nature acts by the same necessity as that by which 
it exists, for we showed that it acts from the same 
necessity of its nature as that by which it exists. 
Therefore the reason or cause why God or nature 
acts, or why they exist, is one and the same; there- 
fore, as God exists with no end in view, He cannot 
act with any end in view, but has no principle or 
end either in existing or acting. A cause, then, that 
is called final is nothing save human appetite itself 
in so far as it is considered as the principle or pri- 
mary cause of anything. E.g., when we say that habi- 
tation is the final cause of this or that house, we 
understand nothing else than this, that man had a 


WISDOM OF SPINOZA 229 


desire of building a house from his imagining the 
conveniences of domestic life. Wherefore habita- 
tion, in so far as it is considered as a final cause, is 
nothing save this individual appetite (or desire), 
which in truth is the effecting cause considered as 
primary, for that men are commonly ignorant of the 
causes of their appetites. For they are, as I have 
already said, conscious of their actions and appetites, 
but ignorant of the causes by which they are deter- 
mined to desire anything. The common saying of 
the vulgar is that nature sometimes is guilty of error 
and goes astray and produces imperfect things. 
Therefore perfection and imperfection are in truth 
only modes of thinking, namely, notions, which we 
are wont to invent owing to the fact that we com- 
pare reciprocally individuals of the same species or 
kind. And on that account I said that by reality 
and perfection I understood the same thing. For 
we are wont to refer all individuals of nature to one 
class which we call most general, namely, to the 
notion of being which appertains absolutely to all 
individuals of nature. In so far as we refer the indi- 
viduals of nature to this one class, and compare 
them reciprocally, and find that some have more 
reality or perfection than others, thus far we call 
some more perfect than others; and in so far as we 
attribute to them something which involves nega- 
tion, as term, end, weakness, etc., thus far we call 
them imperfect, inasmuch as they do not affect our 
mind as much as those which we call perfect, and 
not because there is something wanting in them 
which is part of their nature, or that nature has gone 
astray. For nothing is attracted to the nature of 
anything than that which follows from the neces- 
sity of the nature of the effecting cause, and what- 


230 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


ever follows from the necessity of the nature of 
the effecting cause necessarily happens. 

As for the terms good and bad, they indicate noth- 
ing positive in things considered in themselves, nor 
are they anything else than modes of thought, or 
notions, which we form from the comparison of 
things mutually. For one and the same thing can 
at the same time be good, bad, and indifferent. 
E.g., music is good to the melancholy, bad to those 
who mourn, and neither good nor bad to the deaf. 
Although this be so, these words must be retained 
by us. For inasmuch as we desire to form an idea 
of man as a type of human nature to which we may 
look, we must retain these words for our use in the 
sense I have spoken of. Therefore, in the following 
propositions I shall understand by good what we cer- 
tainly know to be a means of our attaining that type 
of human nature which we have set before us; and 
by bad, that which we know certainly prevents us 
from attaining the said type. Again, we shall call 
men more perfect or imperfect in so far as they 
approach or are distant from this type. For most 
specially must it be noted that when I say a man 
passes from a less to a greater perfection, and the 
contrary, that I do not understand that he is changed 
from one essence or form into another, e.g., a horse 
would be equally destroyed if it were changed into 
a man as if it were changed into an insect; but that 
his power of acting, in so far as this is understood 
by his nature, we conceive to be increased or di- 
minished. Finally, by perfection in general I shall 
understand, as I said, reality, that is, the essence of 
anything, in so far as it exists and operates in a 
certain manner, without any consideration of time. 
For no individual thing can be said to be more per- 


WISDOM OF SPINOZA 231 


fect because it has remained in existence longer: 
the duration of things cannot be determined by their 
essence, since the essence of things does not involve 
a certain and determined time of existing; but every- 
thing, whether it be more or less perfect, shall persist 
in existing with the same force with which it began 
to exist, so that in this all things are equal. 

There is no individual thing in nature than which 
there is none more powerful or stronger; but what- 
ever is given, there is also something stronger given 
by which that given thing can be destroyed. 

We are passive in so far as we are a part of nature 
which cannot be conceived through itself without 
others. 

The force with which man persists in existing is 
limited, and is far surpassed by the power of external 
causes. 

It cannot happen that a man should not be a part 
of nature, and that he should be able not to suffer 
changes, save those which can be understood through 
his nature alone, and of which he is the adequate 
cause. 

Man is always necessarily liable to passions, he 
always follows the common order of nature and 
obeys it, and he accommodates himself to it as much 
as the nature of things demands, 

The force and increase of any passion, and its per- 
sistence in existing, are not defined by the power 
whereby we endeavour to persist in existing, but by 
the power of an external cause compared with our 
own. 

The force of any passion or emotion can so sur- 
pass the rest of the actions or the power of a man 
that the emotion adheres obstinately to him. 

An emotion can neither be hindered nor removed 


232 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


save by a contrary emotion and one stronger in 
checking emotion. | 

An emotion, in so far as it has reference to the 
mind, can neither be hindered nor destroyed save 
through the idea of a contrary modification of the 
body and one stronger than the modification which 
we suffer. For the emotion which we suffer cannot 
be checked or removed save by an emotion stronger 
than it and contrary to it, that-is, save through the 
idea of a modification of the body stronger than and 
contrary to the modification which we suffer. 

The knowledge of good or evil is nothing else than 
the emotion of pleasure or pain, in so far as we are 
conscious of it. 

An emotion whose cause we imagine to be with us 
at the present is stronger than if we did not imagine 
it to be present. 

The desire which arises from the knowledge of 
good and evil, in so far as this knowledge has ref- 
erence to the future, can more easily be checked or 
destroyed than the desire of things which are pleas- 
ing in the present. 

The basis of virtue is the endeavour to preserve 
what is one’s own, and that happiness consists in 
this, that man can preserve what is his own; virtue 
should be desired by us on its own account, and there 
is nothing more excellent or useful to us on which 
account we should desire it; those who commit sui- 
cide are powerless souls, and allow themselves to be 
conquered by external causes repugnant to their 
nature. Again, it follows that we can never bring 
it about that we need nothing outside ourselves for 
our preservation, and that in order to live we need 
have no commerce with things which are without 
us. If, moreover, we looked at our minds, our intel- 


WISDOM OF SPINOZA 233 


lect would be more imperfect if the mind were alone 
and understood nothing save itself. Many things are 
therefore without us which are very useful to us, and 
therefore much to be desired. Of these, none can 
be considered more excellent than those which agree 
with our nature. For (to give an example) if two 
individuals of the same nature were to combine, 
they would form one individual twice as strong as 
either individual; there is therefore nothing more 
useful to man than man. Nothing, I say, can be 
desired by men more excellent for their self-preser- 
vation than that all with all should so agree that 
they compose the minds of all into one mind, and 
the bodies of all into one body, and all endeavour 
at the same time as much as possible to preserve 
their being, and all seek at the same time what is 
useful to them all as a body. From which it follows 
that men who are governed by reason, that is, men 
who, under the guidance of reason, seek what is use- 
ful to them, desire nothing for themselves which they 
do not also desire for the rest of mankind, and there- 
fore they are just, faithful, and honorable. 

Each one necessarily desires or turns from, by the 
laws of his nature, what he thinks to be good or 
evil. 

The more each one seeks what is useful to him, 
that is, the more he endeavours and can preserve his 
being, the more he is endowed with virtue; and, on 
the contrary, the more one neglects to preserve what 
is useful, or his being, he is thus far impotent or 
powerless. 

No one can desire to be blessed, to act well, or 
live well, who at the same time does not desire to be, 
to act, and to live, that is, actually to exist. 

Man, in so far as he is determined to do anything, 


234 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


by the fact that he has inadequate ideas cannot abso- 
lutely be said to act from virtue, but only in so far 
as he is determined by the fact that he understands. 

To act absolutely from virtue is nothing else than 
to act according to the laws of one’s own nature. But 
we only act so in so far as we understand. There- 
fore to act according to virtue is nothing else in us 
than to act, to live, and preserve our being according 
to the guidance of reason, on the basis of seeking 
what is useful to oneself. | 

Whatever we endeavour to do under the guidance 
of reason is nothing else than to understand; nor 
does the mind, in so far as it uses reason, Judge any- 
thing useful to itself save what is conducive to under- 
standing. 

We know nothing to be certainly good or evil save 
what is truly conducive to understanding or what 
prevents us from understanding. 

The greatest good of the mind is the knowledge 
of God, and the greatest virtue of the mind is to 
know God. 

Any individual thing whose nature is altogether 
different to ours can aid or hinder our power of un- 
derstanding, and absolutely nothing can be either 
good or bad save if it have something in common 
with us. 

Nothing can be bad through that which it has in 
common with our nature; but in so far as it is bad, 
thus far it is contrary to us. 

Men can differ in nature in so far as they are as- 
sailed by emotions which are passions, and thus far 
one and the same man is variable and inconstant. 

Men, in so far as they are assailed by emotions. 
which are passions, can be contrary one to the other. 


WISDOM OF SPINOZA 235 

In so far as men live under the guidance of reason, 
thus far only they always necessarily agree in nature. 

He who endeavours from emotion alone to bring 
it to pass that others love what he loves, and that 
others should live according to his liking, acts from 
impulse, and is hateful more especially to those 
whom other things please, and who accordingly en- 
deavour with the same impulse to bring it about that 
others should live according to their idea of life. 
Again, as the greatest good which men desire from 
emotion is often such that only one can possess it, 
it comes about that those who love are not constant 
in mind, and while they delight to praise the things 
they love, yet at the same time they fear to be be- 
lieved. But he who endeavours to lead the rest by 
reason, not impulse, acts humanely and benignly, 
and is most constant in mind. 

The reason wherewith we seek what is useful to 
us teaches us the necessity of uniting ourselves with 
our fellow-men, but not with brutes and things which 
are different from the human species in nature; but 
they have the same right over us as we over them. 
Again, as every one’s right is defined by his virtue or 
power, men have far more right over beasts than 
beasts over men. I do not deny that beasts feel; but 
I deny that on that account we should not consult 
our necessity and use them as much as we wish and 
treat them as we will, since they do not agree with 
us in nature, and their emotions are in nature dif- 
ferent from human emotions. 

That is useful to man which so disposes the human 
body that it can be affected in many modes, or which 
renders it capable of affecting external bodies in 
many modes, and the more so according as it renders 


236 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


the body more apt to be affected in many modes or 
to affect other bodies so; and, on the contrary, that 
is harmful (noxious) to man which renders the body 
less apt for this. 

Whatever brings it to pass that the proportion of 
motion and rest which the parts of the human body 
hold one to the other is preserved, is good; and con- 
trariwise, that is bad which brings it about that the 
parts of the human body have another proportion 
mutually of motion and rest. 

He who wishes to revenge injuries by reciprocal 
hatred will live in misery. But he who endeavours to 
drive away hatred by means of love, fights with pleas- 
ure and confidence; he resists equally one or many 
men, and scarcely needs at all the help of fortune. 
Those whom he conquers yield joyfully, not from 
want of force but increase thereof. All these things 
follow so clearly from the definitions alone of love 
and intellect that there is no need for me to point 
them out. 

He who rightly knows that all things follow from 
the necessity of divine nature, and come to pass ac- 
cording to the eternal natural and regular laws, will 
find nothing at all that is worthy of hatred, laughter, 
or contempt, nor will he deplore any one; but as 
far as human virtue can go, he will endeavour to 
act well, as people say, and to rejoice. To this must 
be added that he who is easily touched by the emo- 
tions of pity, and is moved to tears at the misery of 
another, often does something of which he after- 
wards repents; both inasmuch as we can do nothing 
according to emotion which we can certainly know 
to be good, and inasmuch as we are easily deceived 
by false tears. I am speaking here expressly of a 
man who lives under the guidance of reason. 


WISDOM OF SPINOZA 237 


Inasmuch as men rarely live according to the dic- 
tates of reason, these two emotions, namely, humility 
and repentance, and beside these hope and fear, 
work more good than evil; and so, as we must sin, 
it is better to sin in that. For if men who are power- 
less in mind should all become equally proud, they 
would be shamed with nothing, nor would they fear 
anything wherewith they may be united as with 
chains and held together. If the mob is not in fear, 
it threatens in its turn. Wherefore it is not to be 
wondered at that the prophets, who consulted the 
advantage not of a few but of the commonwealth, 
should have so greatly commended humility, re- 
pentance, and reverence. And in truth those who 
are liable to these emotions can be led far easier than 
others to live under the guidance of reason, that is, 
to be free and enjoy the life of the blessed. 

It would be too long to enumerate here all the 
evils of pride, for the proud are liable to all emotions, 
but to none less than to the emotions of love and 
pity. But I must not be silent concerning the fact 
that a man is called proud who underestimates his 
fellows; and therefore pride in this case must be 
defined as pleasure arisen from a false opinion 
whereby a man considers himself above his fellows. 
And dejection contrary to this pride must be defined 
as pain arisen from the false opinion whereby a man 
thinks himself below his fellows. But we can easily 
conceive from this position that a proud man is 
necessarily envious, and hates those most who are 
most praised by reason of virtue, nor can his hatred 
be easily overcome by their love or benefit, and that 
he delights only in the presence of those who deceive 
his weak mind and from being merely foolish make 
him mad. Although dejection is contrary to pride, 


238 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 

yet a dejected man is nearest to a proud one. For 
since his pain arises from the fact that he compares 
his weakness with the strength or virtue of others, 
his pain will be removed, that is, he will be rejoiced, 
if his imagination be occupied in the contemplation 
of the vices of others, whence the proverb has arisen: 
It is a comfort to the unhappy to have companions 
in misery; and, on the other hand, he will be more 
saddened the more he thinks himself beneath them; 
whence it comes about that none is so prone to 
envy as the dejected, and that these endeavour to 
observe the deeds of men with the greatest care, 
more with the object of carping at them than of cor- 
recting them, and that they praise and glory in de- 
jection alone, but in such a way that they still seem 
dejected. Now these things follow from this emotion 
with the same necessity as it does from the nature 
of a triangle that its three angles are equal to two 
right angles; and I have already said that I call these 
and like emotions bad in so far as I have regard for 
human advantage. But the laws of nature have re- 
spect for the general order of nature of which man 
is a part, which I have paused to mention in passing 
lest any one should think me to wish to relate the 
vices of men and their absurdities, and not to show 
the nature and properties of things. I regard human 
emotions and their properties in the same manner 
as the remaining things of nature. And surely human 
emotions indicate, if not human power and art, at 
least that of nature, no less than many other things 
which we wonder at and in whose contemplation we 
delight. But I pass on to note those things of the 
emotions which bear advantage to men or which 
work them evil. 








MOSES MENDELSSOHN 
Born in Germany, 1729—Died 1786 


Eminent Hebrew Savant Who Devoted His Life to an 
Effort to Conciliate the Christians and the Jews 


MOSES MENDELSSOHN (1729-1786) 


JERUSALEM; A TREATISE ON ECCLESIASTICAL 
AUTHORITY AND JUDAISM 


Translated by M. Samuels 


On PROGRESS 


Progress is for individual man, who is destined by 
Providence to pass a portion of his eternity here on 
earth. Every one goes his own way through life. 
One’s route leads him over flowers and meadows; 
another’s across desert plains, over steep mountains 
or by the side of dangerous precipices. Yet they all 
get on in the journey, pursuing the road to happiness, 
to which they are destined. But that the bulk, or the 
whole human race here on earth, should be con- 
stantly moving forth in progress of time, and per- 
fecting itself, seems to me not to have been the 
design of Providence. 

Do you want to divine the design of Providence 
with man? Then forge no hypotheses; look only 
around you at what actually does pass—and if you 
can take a general view of the history of all ages— 
at what has passed from the beginning. That is fact: 
that must have belonged to the design; that musf 
have been approved of in the plan of Wisdom, or at 
least have been admitted in it. Providence never 
misses its aim. That which actually happens must 
have been its design from the beginning, or have 

239 


240 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


belonged to it. Now, in respect to the human race 
at large, you do not perceive a constant progress of 
improvement, that looks as if approaching nearer 
and nearer to perfection. On the contrary, we see the 
human race as a whole subject to slight swings; and 
it never yet made some steps forward but what it 
did, soon after, slide back again into its previous 
station, with double the celerity. Most nations of 
the earth pass many ages in the same degree of 
civilization, in the same crepusculous light, which 
appears much too dim for our spoiled eyes. Now 
and then a particle of the grand mass will kindle, 
become a bright star, and run through an orbit, 
which, now after a longer, now after a shorter period, 
brings it back again, to its standstill, or sets it down 
at no great distance from it. Man goes on; but man- 
kind is constantly swinging to and fro, within fixed 
boundaries; but, considered as a whole, retains, at 
all periods of time, about the same degree of moral- 
ity, the same quantity of religion and irreligion, of 
virtue and vice, of happiness and misery; the same 
result, when the same is taken into account against 
the same; of all the good and evil as much as was 
required for the transit of individual men, in order 
that they might be trained here on earth, and ap- 
proach as near to perfection as was ions and 
appointed to every one of them. 


On LOVE oF ONE’S FELLOWS 


Knormous crimes are seldom perpetrated for the 
sake of meeting mere selfish desires, or of satisfying 
sensual lust only. ... Ambition sometimes will speak 
louder than country or humanity; nay, at times, it is 
love of country itself which removes all considera- 
tion of justice and philanthropy. ... For this, too, 


MOSES MENDELSSOHN 241 
the remedy is nothing else but stoicism and enthu- 
siasm: Stoicism, or a control over nearer relations, 
the power of lessening their impression, and bestow- 
ing on them no more interest than is due them, ac- 
cording to the rules of reason and of truth; and 
enthusiasm or the power of giving more force and 
energy to the more distant relations of moral life; 
of hearkening, like Socrates, to the voice of country 
and the laws, when love of life, the entreaties of 
friends, and the tears of one’s family deprive one of 
one’s senses; of hearkening, like Regulus, to the voice 
of the most rigid justice, when the pleadings of one’s 
children, kinsmen, friends, and the country at large 
unite with love of life and loudly call for preserva- 
tion. For the same reason, the sage will be just, nay, 
sometimes inexorably severe, when an ordinary good- 
natured man would be compassionate; nay, when an 
otherwise base man would perhaps be sooner molli- 
fied. The sage loves not only what he beholds, he is 
not moved only by what is near, present and visible; 
but his affection comprehends the latest posterity, 
alike with those he carries in his arms; the most 
distant countrymen alike with those present; men 
in the remotest regions and times alike with his 
neighbours and acquaintances; he sees with the eye 
of the mind; and with wise moderation bestows on 
every relation of social life as much interest, as 
much of his affection, as is due to it in relation to 
the whole. 


On ETHICS AND RELIGION 


The system of our duties rests on a_ twofold 
principle, on man’s relation to nature, and on the 
creature’s relation to the Creator. The former is 
Moral philosophy, the latter religion; and with him 


242 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


who is convinced of the truth, that the relations of 
nature are nothing else but expressions of the Divine 
Will, those two principles flow into one; to him the 
ethics of reason are sacred like religion. Nor does 
religion, or the relation between God and man, re- 
quire of us any other duties; it only gives those same 
duties and obligations a sublimer sanction. God 
does not want our assistance, desires no service of 
us, no sacrifice of rights for His benefit, no surrender 
of our independence to His advantage. His rights 
can never clash or become embroiled in ours. He 
only desires our good, the good of every individual; 
and that surely must consist with itself, and cannot 
contradict itself. 


On REASON AND REVELATION 


Commands of God must be reconciled with what 
reason teaches about Him, according to externally 
true principles. It certainly is not a true principle 
of religion that reason must be subordinate to the 
claims of revelation. Has God not given us reason 
as well as revelation? Is not that which reason once 
admits as true, eternal and necessary truth, and just 
as infallible as the Godhead, its author? Has not, 
on that account, the Lord Himself constituted it the 
sole judge of all our thoughts and actions? Revela- 
tion, therefore, neither may nor can contradict it; 
and whenever it does, it does so only in appearance; 
and we must, by searching after the universal and 
deeply lodged sense, try to remove the discrepancy; 
for God can never contradict Himself. However, in 
Holy Writ, He could speak only as with His children, 
only in a manner that could be intelligible to them, 
at a period when they were yet but children in under- 
standing and in the faculty of judging. Will not a 


MOSES MENDELSSOHN 243 


father speak in quite another manner to a son of 
fifteen years than he does to one of four; then why 
should God not observe the same when He is speak- 
ing to us? What the father tells the elder must be 
expressed in quite other terms than would be suit- 
able for the younger; that which is truth and neces- 
sary to the former is not so for the latter. Just so 
does God speak with man. In Holy Writ He speaks 
only to weak and sensual men of an uncultivated 
understanding; He had to be regulated by their 
notions and exigencies, if they were at all to com- 
prehend Him, lest they should lose the substance of 
His laws through the mode of expression. Now the 
substance alone is the aim of revelation, not the 
figure, not the expression in which it is clothed. As 
soon, therefore, as reason has arrived at maturity in 
a people, it becomes their duty to separate the shell 
from the kernel; and, surely, it was for this purpose 
that God gave reason to man; also with regard to 
revelation it is the supreme Judge. 


ON THE REVELATION OF JUDAISM 


Judaism boasts of no exclusive revelation of im- 
mutable truths indispensable to salvation; of no 
revealed religion in the sense in which that term is 
usually taken. Revealed religion is one thing, re- 
vealed legislation is another. The voice which was 
heard on Sinai on that memorable day did not say, 
“IT am the Lord, thy God, the eternal, self-existing 
Being, omnipotent and omniscient, Who rewards men, 
in a future life, according to their works.” All this 
is the universal religion of mankind, and not Juda- 
ism. And it was not the universal religion of man- 
kind, without which they can neither be virtuous nor 
saved, that was revealed there. In the main, it could 


244 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


not; for whom were the voice of thunder and the 
sound of trumpets to convince of those eternal 
tenets of salvation? Surely not the animal man, to 
whom his own reflections had never yet suggested the 
existence of an invisible Being that rules and governs 
this visible world; him the marvelous voice would 
not have inspired with ideas, and, therefore, could 
not have convinced. Still less would it have con- 
vinced the sophist, about whose ears so many doubts 
and cavils are buzzing that he is no longer able to 
distinguish the voice of sound common sense. 
Logical demonstration is what he demands; no 
miracles. And if, for the sake of confirming an im- 
mutable truth, the founder of a religion raise up from 
the earth all the dead that ever walked on it, still 
a skeptic would say: the teacher has raised many 
dead, it is true, but about the immutable truth I am 
no wiser than before. Now I know that some one is 
able to do, and to cause to be heard, extraordinary 
things; but there may be several such beings, who 
may not think proper to reveal themselves just now; 
besides, how very short does all this fall of the infin- 
itely sublime idea of an only eternal Godhead, who 
rules this universe after His own unlimited will, and 
sees into the most secret thoughts of men, to reward 
their works, according to their merits, if not always 
here, still hereafter! He who knew nothing about 
this, who was not penetrated with the truths so in- 
dispensable to human happiness, and thus unpre- 
pared went up to the holy mount, him the stupendous 
and wonderful array might stun and awe, but not 
teach him better. No; all that was supposed to be 
already known, or, perhaps, was taught and ex- 
plained by human reasoning, and placed beyond all 
doubt, during the days of preparation. And now the 


MOSES MENDELSSOHN 245 


divine voice called out, “I am the Lord thy God, who 
led thee out of the land of Egypt, who delivered thee 
from bondage,” etc. An historical fact, on which 
the legislation of that particular people was to be 
founded, since laws were to be revealed there; com- 
mandments, judgments, but no immutable theo- 
logical truths. 


On JupDGING ALIEN RELIGIONS 


In judging of the religious notions of a people un- 
known to us in other respects, we ought to take care 
not to view everything with our own home-bred 
eyes, lest we should call idolatry what, in the main, 
is nothing but writing. Figure to yourself another 
Otaheitan, neither knowing anything about the secret 
of the art of writing, nor having been gradually in- 
ured to our ideas, were all at once transplanted from 
his own part of the world to one of the most un- 
pictorial temples in Europe; and to render the in- 
stance more striking, say, to the temple of Provi- 
dence. He finds it bare of images and decorations, 
save on the further white stuccoed wall, some black 
lines and dots, which chance might trace there. Oh, 
no; the whole congregation are looking at those lines 
and dots with reverential awe, and with their hands 
folded address their petitions to them. Now let him 
be as suddenly and rapidly conveyed back to Otahe- 
ite, and there give his inquisitive countrymen an 
account of the theological notions in vogue at the 
D .. .Philanthropin. Would they not both laugh 
at and lament the gross superstition of their fellow- 
creatures, who had sunk so low as to pay divine 
adoration to several black lines and dots on a white 
wall? Similar mistakes our own travelers may have 


246 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


frequently committed, when describing to us the 
religions of remote nations. 


On CHURCH AND STATE 


The state is, if need be, contented with dead works, 
with services without spirit, with consonance of 
action without consonance of thought. Even he who 
thinks nothing of laws must do as the law bids, 
when once it has been sanctioned. The individual 
citizen may be allowed the privilege of judging of 
the laws, but not that of acting up to his judgment; 
for, as a member of society, he was obliged to sur- 
render that right, because without such surrender a 
social compact would be a chimera. Not so religion! 
Religion knows of no actions without persuasion, of 
no works without spirit, of no consonance of acting 
without consonance of thought. Religious ob- 
servances without religious thoughts are idle boy’s 
play, and no worship; this, as such, must, therefore, 
proceed from the spirit, and can neither be purchased 
by rewards, nor enforced by punishments. But from 
civil actions also religion withdraws its auspices, so 
far as they are not produced by principle, but by 
authority. Nor has the state to expect any further 
co-operation of religion, when it cannot act other- 
wise than by rewards and punishments; for when 
that is the case, the duties towards God cease to be 
of any consideration; and the relations between man 
and his Creator have no effect. All the help religion 
can then lend the state consists in teaching and com- 
forting. It instils, by its divine lessons, into the 
citizen principles tending to public utility; and, 
with its superhuman consolations, supports the male- 
factor doomed to die for the public good. 


MOSES MENDELSSOHN 247 


On CuHuRCH UNITY 


If an union of religions be at all feasible, it can 
be of none but the worst consequences to reason and 
to the freedom of conscience. For supposing them 
all to be of one mind about the articles of faith they 
propose to introduce and establish; supposing them 
to have accomplished symbols with which none of 
the religions prevailing in Europe at present has any 
fault to find; and what would have been effected 
then? He that has the least knowledge of the con- 
struction of the human understanding will believe 
no such thing. Then the unanimity would lie only 
in the words, and in the formule. It is that which 
the consolidators of religions mean to join for; they 
want to nip, here and there, a bit off the notions; 
keep here and there stretching and enlarging the 
meshes of terms, and make them become so flimsy 
and indefinite that the ideas, notwithstanding their 
inward variety, would scarcely be contained in them. 
Every one would then, in fact, associate with one 
and the same word a different idea, peculiar to him- 
self; and ye would boast of having consummated a 
union of the different creeds of mankind; of having 
brought the whole flock under one single shepherd! 
Oh, if there be at all a design in this so specious a 
pretense, I fear it is that of, in the first place, penning 
up again the human mind, as yet free. The shy thing 
will then let itself be caught easily, and suffer the 
halter to be thrown on its neck. Only tack religion 
to symbols, to as modest and pliant words as you 
please; only appoint, once for all, the articles; and 
woe unto the unfortunate who comes a day after, 
and criticizes even those modest and pliant words! 


248 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 
He is a disturber of the peace. To the stake with 
him! 

On FREEDOM OF CONSCIENCE 


Principles are free. Persuasions, from their na- 
ture, admit neither of compulsion nor bribery; they 
are the business of man’s judging faculty, and must 
be decided on by the standard of truth or untruth. 
Good and evil work on his approving or disapprov- 
ing faculty; reward and punishment direct his will, 
spur his energy, animate, tempt, or frighten him. 

But if principles are to render happy, man must 
neither be terrified nor wheedled into them; the judg- 
ment of the reasoning faculties alone must stand 
good. To let ideas of good or evil intermeddle is to 
let cases be decided by an incompetent judge. 

Neither State nor Church has therefore a right 
to submit the principles and persuasions of men to 
any compulsion whatsoever. Neither Church nor 
State is entitled to connect rights over persons, or 
claims to things, with principles and persuasions; 
and to weaken, by extraneous admixture, the influ- 
ence of the force of truth on the discerning faculty. 


THE PRAYER OF A PHILOSOPHER 


Infinite Being. Creator of all the worlds. Father 
of all the Spirits. Father of the angels, of man, and 
also of the worm! To Thee all natures owe their 
substance, their existence and their preservation. 
Thou impartest of Thy divine attributes to the finite; 
Thou givest the clod reality; the plant life; the brute 
animal enjoyment, and man the privilege of know- 
ing good and evil; and of acknowledging Thee, O 
Father of all! But Thy infinite goodness preserves 
and sustains also him who confoundeth good with 


MOSES MENDELSSOHN 249 


evil, and also the more unhappy one who denieth 
Thee, and saith, there is no God! For Thou rulest 
choiceless nature only with constraining omnipo- 
tence; but to the world of spirits Thou hast left 
liberty and free agency, which, with paternal mild- 
ness, Thou gently directest to a final purpose. 

The vicious one who is a slave to his passions, it 
is true, troubleth the order of his soul, his inward 
peace, and maketh himself unhappy; for harmony 
and concord is the bliss of spirits. But vain are his 
endeavours to distract the order of the whole, which 
Thy omnipotence maintaineth with irresistible strict- 
ness. However the daring one may oppose Thee, 
his actions must at last ply to Thy all-wise purposes. 
Thy Providence manageth the struggle of the pas- 
sions as it doth the conflict of the elements. 

Tyranny and concupiscence execute Thy divine 
commands equally with thunder and subterranean 
fire. All evil, moral as well as physical, must turn 
to good in the end; and all, all accord with the grand 
harmony with which this vast universe resoundeth 
in praise of Thee. 

O Thou Author of wisdom! cause us to be wise, 
that we may be happy. May our will agree with our 
destiny, our inclinations with Thy designs; and may 
every thought, every act of ours, be a harmony in 
creation’s immense psaltery. Oh, teach us to know 
Thy all-goodness, to enjoy Thy bounties as liberally 
and plenteously as Thou distributest them; and to 
receive with thanks and gladness the adversities 
which Thou intendest for us, even because it is Thou 
who intended them for us. Cause us to search after 
truth, to love our brethren, when they search after 
it along with us; to honour them if they find it, pity 
them if they err, and forgive them with our whole 


250 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 
heart if they offend us, even as Thou forgivest us, 
O Thou source of truth and love! 


THE INVISIBLE CHURCH 


I endorse willingly and with my whole heart all 
the good you say of the moral teachings of the New 
Testament. I am myself assured that many of those 
things which Christian Rabbis have ascribed to Jesus, 
never entered His mind or crossed His lips; things 
for the denial of which they slew men and allowed 
themselves to be slain. A Christianity such as yours 
would change this earth into a paradise, if it were 
generally accepted. In a matter of such transcendent 
concern to mankind, why stop to quarrel about a 
name? Call it Christianity if you think that that 
name would be helpful in speeding on that golden 
age; but that Christianity is of a surety, an Invisible 
Church, consisting of Christians, Jews, Moham- 
medans, Chinese and others, and from which, above 
all, the ancient Greeks and Romans must not be ex- 
cluded. Strange how our judgments conflict with 
each other; in history we lavish praise on those 
nations, admitting freely that we are much below 
them in almost all things; but when we come to the 
reward of goodness which a just God cannot with- 
hold from any one, we do not mention them, nay, 
worse, with wicked ingratitude consign them to 
Orcus. 

From A LETTER TO A CHRISTIAN, BY 
Moses MENDELSSOBN. 


THE OVERRULING POWER 


The evil-doer, who is a slave to his passions, de- 
stroys the peace of his soul, thereby causing his own 


MOSES MENDELSSOHN 251 


unhappiness; for harmony and unity are the beati- 
tude of spirits. But he cannot disturb the order of 
the whole, over which omnipotence watches with 
implacable vigor; his actions must, in the end, con- 
form to God’s all-wise intentions. His providence 
overrules the conflict of human passions as well as 
that of the elemental forces. Tyranny and lust serve 
His Divine behests, as does thunder and earthquakes. 
Ultimately all evil, moral and physical, must change 
into good and all forces chime in with the great 
symphony of praise, sounding from all parts of the 
world. O Thou primal Source of wisdom, teach us 
to be wise, that we may be truly happy; teach us to 
comprehend Thy goodness, and to enjoy Thy bless- 
ings, in accordance with the kindness and abundance 
with which Thy hand bestows them on us. The trials 
of our life, oh, help us to bear them contentedly, yea, 
even thankfully; since Thou canst do no wrong, and 
all Thy decrees are done in wisdom and in mercy. 
Moses MENDELSSOHN. 


THE Hore oF SALVATION 


Your question, why I do not try to make converts, 
has, I must say, somewhat surprised me. The duty 
to proselytize springs clearly from the idea that out- 
side a certain belief there is no salvation. I, as a 
Jew, am not bound to accept that dogma, because ac- 
cording to the teachings of the Rabbis, the righteous 
of all nations shall have part in the rewards of 
the future world; your motive, therefore, is foreign 
to me; nay, as a Jew, I am not allowed publicly to 
attack any religion which is sound in its mora] teach- 
Re 

The practice of these teachings I call Internal 
Service of God; and not to assist in the dissemina- 


252 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


tion of them would show an extreme want of interest 
in the welfare of my fellowmen; but as to dogmas 
and ceremonies (the External Service of God), how 
can I know which are the best for others? All I am 
convinced of is: that those I profess and practice 
are the best for me, and the fact that I believe these 
ordinances to have been commanded by God does not 
oblige me to assume that they needs must be the 
best for all the rest of the world. This also I do 
know: that I love all friends of virtue and of wisdom 
heartily, no matter what their External Service, and 
if you are in reality as good as you appear in your 
letter, I esteem you most sincerely. 
From A LETTER OF Moses MENDELSSOHN 
TO A NON-JEWISH CORRESPONDENT. 


DIVINE PROTECTION 


For my part, I content myself with the conviction 
that I shall always remain under Divine protection; 
that a holy and just Providence rules in the future 
world as it does in this, and that my true happiness 
consists in the beauty and perfection of my soul. 
These are: temperance, justice, freedom, love, be- 
nevolence, knowledge of God, laboring in the service 
of His purpose and an entire surrender to His will. 
These are the beatitudes which I expect to find in the 
future life, and more I need not to know in order to 
go cheerfully on the way that leads to it; thither you 
will all follow me when your hour shall come. 

Moses MENDELSSOHN. 


HEBREW FEASTS AND FESTIVALS 


PASSOVER 


The feast of unleavened bread, or “Passover,” be- 
gins upon the evening of the 14th day of Nissan 
(April), and was instituted in commemoration of our 
ancestors’ redemption from Egypt, a memorial for- 
ever. During its continuance we are strictly for- 
bidden the use of any leavened thing. 

Moses said to the Israelites in the name of the 
Lord: 

“Draw out and take for yourselves a lamb,” etc. 

By the observance of this precept they have de- 
served well of God and He would redeem them, for 
when He spoke they were “naked and bare” of good 
deeds and meritorious acts. 

“Draw out and take for yourselves a lamb.” 

Draw yourselves away from the idols which ye 
are worshipping with the Egyptians, the calves and 
lambs of stone and metal, and with one of the same 
animals through which ye sin prepare to fulfill the 
commandments of your God. 

The planet sign of the month Nissan is a lamb; 
therefore, that the Egyptians might not think that 
through the powers of the lamb they had thrown off 
the yoke of slavery, God commanded His people to 
take a lamb and eat it. 

They were commanded to roast it whole and to 

253 


254 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


break no bone of it, so that the Egyptians might know 
that it was indeed a lamb which they had consumed. 

The Lord said to Moses, “Tell the children of Israel 
that they shall borrow of the Egyptians gold and 
silver vessels,” in order that it might not be after- 
ward said, “The words ‘they will make them serve, 
and they will afflict them’ were fulfilled; but the 
words ‘they shall go out with Breet substance’ did 
not come to pass.” 

When Moses told the Israelites that they should 
go up out of Egypt with great substance, they an- 
swered, “Would that we could go even empty- 
handed,” like to the servant confined in prison. 

“To-morrow,” said the jailor to him, “I will re- 
lease thee from prison, and give thee much money.” 

“Let me go to-day, and give me nothing,” replied 
the prisoner. 

On the seventh day of the Passover the children of 
Israel passed through the Red Sea on dry land. 

A man was once traveling along the road and his 
son preceded him on the way. A robber appeared in 
the path, and the man put his son behind him. Then 
lo, a wolf came after the lad, and his father lifted 
him up and carried him within his arms. 

The sea was before the Israelites, the Egyptians 
were behind them, so God lifted up His child and 
carried it within His arms. 

When Israel suffered from the hot rays of the sun 
God “spread the cloud for a covering”; when they 
were hungry He sent them bread from heaven; and 
when they thirsted “He brought forth floods from a 
rock.” 

PENTECOST 

The Feast of Weeks, or “Pentecost,” occurs upon 

the sixth day of the third month, Sivan (June). It is 


HEBREW FEASTS AND FESTIVALS 255 


called the Feast of Weeks because forty-nine days, 
or seven weeks, duly numbered, elapse between the 
second day of Passover, when (during the existence 
of the Temple) a sheaf of green barley was offered, 
and this festival, when two loaves made of the first 
flour of the wheat harvest were “brought before the 
Lord.” It is also the anniversary of the delivery of 
the commandments from Mount Sinai. 

Why does not the Bible particularize in this as on 
other occasions, and say directly, “On the sixth day 
of the third month was the law given”? 

Because in ancient times the men called “wise” 
placed their faith and dependence upon the planets. 
They divided these into seven, apportioning one to 
each day of the week. Some nations selected for 
their greatest god the sun, other nations the moon, 
and so on, and prayed to them and worshipped them. 
They knew not that the planets moved and changed 
according to the course of nature, established by the 
Most High, a course which He might change accord- 
ing to His will, and into their ignorant ideas many 
of the Israelites had entered. Therefore, as they con- 
sidered the planets as seven, God made many other 
things depending on that number, to show that as He 
made them, so had He made the planets. 

The seventh day of the week He made the Sab- 
bath; the seventh year he made the year of rest; 
after seven times seven years, or after seven Sab- 
batical years, He ordained the Jubilee, or year of 
release. Seven days He gave to the Passover festival, 
and seven days to the Feast of Tabernacles. Seven 
days was Jericho surrounded, and seven priests took 
seven trumpets and marched round its walls seven 
times upon the seventh day. 

Therefore, after numbering seven weeks during 


250 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


the ripening time of the grain, the Israelites were to 
hold a holy convocation, to praise the One who can 
prevent all things, but who cannot be prevented; who 
can change all things, but is unchangeable. 

The first day the Israelites were redeemed from 
slavery and superstition; the fiftieth day a law was 
given them for their guide through life; therefore 
they are commanded to number these days and re- 
member them. | 

The children of Ishmael, says the legend, were 
asked to accept the law. “What does it contain?” 
they asked. “Thou shalt not steal,” was the answer. 
“How can we then accept it,” they returned, “when 
thus was our forefather blessed, “hy hand shall be 
against every man’?” 

The children of Esau were asked to accept the 
law, and they also inquired, “What does it contain?” 
“Thou shalt not kill,” was the answer. “We cannot 
accept it, then,” said they, “for thus did our father 
Isaac bless us, ‘By the sword shalt thou live.’ ” 

When Israel was asked to accept the law, the 
people answered, “We will do and obey.” 


New YEAR, OR THE Day oF MEMORIAL 


On the first day of the seventh month, Tishri 
(September) is the commemoration of the creation 
of the world. Then the cornet is blown to announce 
to the people that a new year has begun its course, 
and to warn them to examine strictly their conduct 
and make amends therein where amends are needed. 

Would not any person of sense, knowing that he - 
must appear before a Court of Judgment, prepare 
himself therefor? Ejther in a civil or a criminal case 
would he not seek for counsel? How much more, 


HEBREW FEASTS AND FESTIVALS 257 
then, is it incumbent upon him to prepare for a 
meeting with the King of kings, before Whom all 
things are revealed. No counsel can help him in 
his case; repentance, devotion, charity, these are the 
arguments which must plead in his favor. There- 
fore, a person should search his actions and repent 
his transgressions previous to the day of judgment. 
In the month of Elul (August) he should arouse 
himself to a consciousness of the dread justice await- 
ing all manknd. 

This is the season when the Lord pardoned the 
Israelites who had worshipped the molten calf. He 
commanded Moses to reascend the mount for a 
second tablet, after he had destroyed the first. Thus 
say the sages, “The Lord said unto Moses in the 
month Elul, ‘Go up unto Me on the mountain,’ and 
Moses went up and received the second tablet at the 
end of forty days. Before he ascended he caused 
the trumpet to be sounded through the shophar 
(cornet) in the synagogues, to give warning to the 
people that the day of judgment, New Year, is rap- 
idly approaching, and with it the Day of Atonement. 
Therefore, propitiatory prayers are said twice every 
day, morning and evening, from the second day of 
Elul until the eve of the Day of Atonement, which 
period comprises the last forty days which Moses 
passed on Sinai, when God was reconciled to Israel 
and pardoned their transgressions with the molten 
calf. 

Rabbi Eleazer said, “Abraham and Jacob were 
born in Tishri, and in Tishri they died. On the first 
of Tishri the universe was created, and during the 
Passover was Isaac born. On the first of Tishri (New 
Year), Sarah, Rachel, and Hannah, three barren 
women, were visited. On the first day of Tishri our 


258 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


ancestors discontinued their rigorous labor in Egypt. 
On the first of Tishri Adam was created; from his 
existence we count our years, that is, the sixth day 
of the creation. On that day, too, did he eat of the 
forbidden fruit, therefore is the season appointed for 
one of penitence, for the Lord said to Adam, “This 
shall be for a sign in future generations; thy de- 
scendants shall be judged upon these days, and they 
shall be appointed as days of pardon and forgive- 
ness.’ ” 

Four times in the year the Lord pronounces His 
decrees. 

First, New Year, the first of Tishri. Then the judg- 
ments of all human beings for the coming year are 
ordained. 

Second, the first day of Passover. Then the scar- 
city or fullness of the crops is determined. 

Third, Pentecost. Then the Lord blesses the fruit 
of the trees, or bids them bear not in plenty. 

Fourth, the Feast of Tabernacles. Then the Lord 
determines whether the rain shall bless the earth in 
its due season or not. 

Man is judged on New Year’s and the decree is 
made final on the Day of Atonement. 

Rabbi Nathan has said that man is judged at all 
times. 

Thus taught Rabbi Akiba. “Why does the law 
command the bringing of a sheaf of barley on the 
Passover? Because the Passover is the season of 
the harvest of the grain. The Lord says, ‘Offer for 
Me a sheaf of barley on Passover, that I may bless 
the grain which is in the field.’ 

“Why does the Bible say, ‘Bring two loaves of the 
new wheat on Pentecost?’ Because at Pentecost time 
the fruit ripens, and God says, ‘Offer for Me two 


HEBREW FEASTS AND FESTIVALS 259 
loaves of the new wheat, in order that I may bless the 
fruit which is on the trees.’ 

“Why are we commanded to bring a drink-offer- 
ing of water into the Temple on the Feast of Taber- 
nacles? Because then is the season of rain, and the 
Lord says, ‘Bring the drink-offering of water to Me, 
in order that I may bless the rain of the year.’ 

“Why do they make the cornet which they blow 
of a ram’s horn? In order that the Lord may re- 
member the ram which was sacrificed instead of 
Isaac, and allow the merits of the patriarchs to weigh 
in favor of their descendants, as it is written in the 
Decalogue, ‘Showing mercy to thousands of those 
who love Me and keep My commandments.’ ” 

On New Year’s day they recite in the synagogues 
the record of the binding of Isaac for the same pur- 
pose. While God has mercy upon His creatures He 
gives them a season for repentance, that they may 
not perish in their wickedness, therefore as it is 
written in Lamentations 3. 40, we should “search 
through and investigate our ways and return unto 
the Lord.” 

During the year man is apt to grow callous as to 
his transgressions, therefore the cornet is sounded 
to arouse him to the consciousness of the time which 
is passing so rapidly away. “Rouse thee from thy 
sleep,” it says to him; “the hour of thy visitation ap- 
proaches.” The Eternal wishes not to destroy His 
children, merely to arouse them to repentance and 
good resolves. 

Three classes of people are arraigned for judg- 
ment: the righteous, the wicked, and the indifferent. 
To the righteous the Lord awards a happy life; the 
wicked He condemns, and to the indifferent ones He 
grants a respite. From New Year’s day until the 


260 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


Day of Atonement His judgment He holds in abey- 
ance; if they repent truly they are classed with the 
righteous for a happy life, and if they remain un- 
touched, they are counted With the wicked. 

Three sounds for the cornet are commanded in the 
Bible. A pure sound (7’kiah), a sound of alarm or 
trembling (T’ruah), and, thirdly, a pure sound again 
(T’kiah). 

The first sound typifies man’s first awakening to 
penitence; he must search well his heart, desert his 
evil ways, and purify his thoughts, as it is written, 
“Let the wicked forsake his ways and the man of un- 
righteousness his thoughts, and let him return unto 
the Lord.” 

The alarm-sound typifies the sorrow which a re- 
pentant man feels for his misconduct and his earnest 
determination to reform. 

The last sound is the pure sound again, which 
typifies a sincere resolve to keep the repentant heart 
incorrupt. 

The Bible says to us: 

“The word is very nigh unto thee, in thy mouth 
and in thy heart, that thou mayest do it.” This verse 
teaches us that repentance is nearer to those who 
believe in God and His book than fanatics would 
make it. Difficult penances are ordained for the 
sinner among them. He must fast many days, or 
travel barefoot through rugged ways, or sleep in the 
open air. But we are not required to travel to the 
nether end of the ocean or to climb to mountain tops, 
for our Holy Word says to us, “It is not in heaven, 
neither is it beyond the sea, but the Word is very 
nigh.” 

In three ways may we repent: 


HEBREW FEASTS AND FESTIVALS 2061 


First, By word of mouth, finding birth in an honest 
heart. 

Secondly, With our feelings, sorrow for sins com- 
mitted. 

Thirdly, By good deeds in the future. 

Rabbi Saadiah declared that God commanded us 
to sound the cornet on New Year’s day for ten rea- 
sons. 

First, Because this day is the beginning of the crea- 
tion, when God began to reign over the world, and 
as it is customary fo sound the trumpets at the coro- 
nation of a king, we should in like manner proclaim 
by the sound of the cornet that the Creator is our 
King—as David said, “With trumpets and the sound 
of the cornet shout ye before the Lord.” 

Secondly, As the New Year day is the first of the 
ten penitential days, we sound the cornet as a proc- 
lamation to admonish all to return to God and re- 
pent. If they do not so, they at least have been in- 
formed, and cannot plead ignorance. Thus we find 
that earthly kings publish their decrees with such 
concomitant, that none may say, “We heard not 
this.” 

Thirdly, To remind us of the law given on Mount 
Sinai, where it is said, “The voice of the cornet was 
exceedingly loud.” To remind us also that we should 
bind ourselves anew to the performance of its pre- 
cepts, as did our ancestors, when they said, “All that 
the Lord hath said will we do and obey.” 

Fourthly, To remind us of the prophets, who were 
compared to watchmen blowing the trumpet of 
alarm, as we find in Ezekiel, “Whosoever heareth the 
sound of the cornet and taketh not warning, and the 
sound cometh and taketh him away, his blood shall 


262 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


be upon his own head; but he that taketh warning 
shall save his life.” 

Fifthly, To remind us of the destruction of the 
Temple and the fearsome sound of the battle-cry of 
our enemies. “Because thou hast heard, oh, my soul, 
the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war.” There- 
fore when we hear the sound of the cornet we should 
implore God to rebuild the Temple. 

Sixthly, To remind us of the binding of Isaac, who 
willingly offered himself for immolation, in order 
to sanctify the Holy Name. 

Seventhly, That when we hear the terrifying sound, 
we may, through dread, humble ourselves before the 
Supreme Being, for it is the nature of these martial 
instruments to produce a sensation of terror, as the 
prophet Amos observes, “Shall a trumpet be blown 
in a city, and the people not to be terrified?” 

Kighthly, To remind us of the great and terrible 
Day of Judgment, on which the trumpet is to be 
sounded, as we find in Zeph., “The great day of the 
Lord is near, and hasteneth much, a day of the trum- 
pet and of shouting.” 

Ninthly, To remind us to pray for the time when 
the outcasts of Israel are to be gathered together, 
as promised in Isaiah, “And it shall come to pass in 
that day, the great trumpet shall be sounded, and 
those shall come who were perishing in the land of 
Assyria.” 

Tenthly, To remind us of the resurrection of the 
dead, and our firm belief therein. “Yea, all ye that 
inhabit the world, and that dwell on the earth, when 
the standard is lifted upon the mountain, behold, 
and when the trumpet is sounded, hear!” says the 
prophet Isaiah. 

Therefore should we set our hearts to these sea- 


HEBREW FEASTS AND FESTIVALS 263 


sons, and fulfill the precept that the Bible commands 
us, as it is written: 

“And the Lord commanded us to do all the 
statutes . . . that it might be well with us at all 
times.” 

THE Day oF ATONEMENT 

The hearts of all who fear God should tremble 
with the reflection that all the deeds of the creature 
are known to the Creator, and will be by Him ac- 
counted to them for good or evil. God is ready at 
all times to acknowledge true penitence; and of re- 
pentance there are seven degrees: 

First, The righteous man, who repents his mis- 
conduct as soon as he becomes aware of his sin. This 
is the best and most complete. 

Secondly, Of the man who has for some time led 
a life of sin, yet who, in the vigor of his days, gives 
over his evil ways and conquers his wrong inclina- 
tions. As Solomon has said, “Remember thy Creator 
in the days of thy youthful vigor.” While in the 
prime of life abandon thy evil ways. 

Thirdly, Of the one who was prevented by some 
cause from the commission of a contemplated sin, 
and who truly repents his evil intention. “Happy 
is the man who fears the Lord,” said the Psalmist. 
The man, not the woman? Aye, all mankind. The 
word is used to denote strength; those who repent 
while still in their youth. 

Fourthly, Of the one who repents when his sin is 
pointed out to him, and he is rebuked for the same, 
as in the instance of the inhabitants of Nineveh. 
They repented not until Jonah proclaimed to them, 
“Yet forty days more, and Nineveh shall be over- 
thrown.” The men of Nineveh believed in God’s 
mercy, and though the decree had been pronounced 


264 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


against them, yet they repented. “And God saw 
their work, that they had returned from their evil 
ways, and God bethought Himself of the evil which 
He had spoken that He would do to them, and He 
did it not.” Therefore say the Rabbis, “Our breth- 
ren, neither sackcloth nor fasting will gain forgive- 
ness for sins; but repentance of the heart and good 
deeds; for it is not said of the men of Nineveh, ‘God 
saw their fasting and sackcloth,’ but ‘God saw their 
work, that they had turned from their evil ways.’ ” 

Fifthly, Of those who repent when trouble befalls 
them. How much nobler is this than human nature! 
Instance Jephtah: “Did ye not hate Me... and 
why are ye come unto Me now when you are in dis- 
tress?” But the infinite mercy of our God accepts 
even such repentance; as it is written, “When thou 
art in tribulation, and all these things have overtaken 
thee . . . then wilt thou return unto the Lord thy 
God.” Founded upon this is the proverb of the 
fathers, “Repentance and good deeds form a shield 
against punishment.” 

Sixthly, The repentance of age. Even when man 
grows old and feeble, if he repents truly, his atone- 
ment will be received. As the Psalmist says, “Thou 
turnest man to contrition, and sayest, ‘Return, ye 
children of men.’” Meaning, man can return at any 
time or any age, “Return, ye children of men.” 

Say the Rabbis, “Although a man has been right- 
eous in his youth and vigor, yet if he rebels against 
the will of God in his old age, the merit of his former 
goodness shall be lost to him, as it is written, ‘When a 
righteous man turns away from his righteousness 
and doeth wrong, and dieth therefor, through his 
wrong which he hath done must he die.’ But a man 
who has been wicked in his early days, and feels true 


HEBREW FEASTS AND FESTIVALS 265 


sorrow and penitence in his old age, shall not be 
called ‘wicked’ any more. This, however, is not 
gracious penitence when it is so long delayed.” 

Seventhly, Is the last degree of penitence. Of the 
one who is rebellious against his Creator during 
all the days of his life; turns to Him only when the 
hand of death is laid upon him. 

Say the Rabbis, if a person is sick, and the hour of 
his decease approaches, they who are by his death- 
bed should say to him, “Confess thy sins to thy 
Creator.” 

They who are near the point of death should con- 
fess their shortcomings. The sick man is as the man 
who is before a court of justice. The latter may have 
advocates to defend him or laud his case, but the 
only advocates of the former must be penitence and 
good deeds. As is written in the Book of Job, “If 
there be now about him one single angel as defender, 
one out of a thousand, to tell for man his upright- 
ness, then is he gracious unto him, and saith, ‘Release 
him from going down to the pit; I have found an 
atonement.’ ” 

Thus we have seven different degrees of penitence, 
and he who neglects them all must suffer in the 
world to come. Therefore fulfill the duties laid upon 
you; repent as long as you are able to amend. As 
the Rabbis say, “Repent in the antechamber, that 
thou mayest enter the room of state.” 

“Turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; wherefore 
will ye die, O house of Israel!” exclaimed the prophet 
Ezekiel; and what does this warning mean? without 
repentance ye shall die. 

Penitence is thus illustrated by a parable: 

There was once a great ship which had been sail- 
ing for many days upon the ocean. Before it reached 


266 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 

its destination, a high wind arose, which drove it 
from its course; until, finally, becalmed close to a 
pleasant-appearing island, the anchor was dropped. 
There grew upon this island beautiful flowers and 
luscious fruits in “great profusion”; tall trees lent a 
pleasing, cooling shade to the place, which appeared 
to the ship’s passengers most desirable and invit- 
ing. They divided themselves into five parties; the 
first party determined not to leave the ship, for said 
they, “A fair wind may arise, the anchor may be 
raised, and the ship sail on, leaving us behind; we 
will not risk the chance of missing our destination 
for the temporary pleasure which this island offers.” 
The second party went on shore for a short time, 
enjoyed the perfume of the flowers, tasted of the 
fruit, and returned to the ship happy and refreshed, 
finding their places as they had left them, losing 
nothing, but rather gaining in health and good spirits 
by the recreation of their visit on shore. The third 
party also visited the island, but they stayed so long 
that the fair wind did arise, and hurrying back they 
just reached the ship as the sailors were lifting the 
anchor, and in the haste and confusion many lost 
their places, and were not as comfortable during the 
balance of their voyage as at the outset. They were 
wiser, however, than the fourth party; these latter 
stayed so long upon the island and tasted so deeply 
of its pleasures, that they allowed the ship’s bell of 
warning to sound unheeded. Said they, “The sails 
are still to be set; we may enjoy ourselves a few 
minutes more.” Again the bell sounded, and still 
they lingered, thinking, “The captain will not sail 
without us.” So they remained on shore until they 
saw the ship moving; then in wild haste they swam 
after it and scrambled up the sides, but the bruises 


HEBREW FEASTS AND FESTIVALS 267 


and injuries which they encountered in so doing 
were not healed during the remainder of the voyage. 
But, alas, for the fifth party. They ate and drank 
so deeply that they did not even hear the bell, and 
when the ship started they were left behind. Then 
the wild beasts hid in the thickets made of them a 
prey, and they who escaped this evil perished from 
the poison of surfeit. 

The “ship” is our good deeds, which bear us to our 
destination, heaven. The “island” typifies the pleas- 
ures of the world, which the first set of passengers 
refused to taste or look upon, but which, when en- 
joyed temperately, as by the second party, make our 
lives pleasant, without causing us to neglect our du- 
ties. These pleasures must not be allowed, how- 
ever, to gain too strong a hold upon our senses. True, 
we may return, as the third party, while there is yet 
time and but little bad effect, or even as the fourth 
party at the eleventh hour, saved, but with bruises 
and injuries which cannot be entirely healed; but 
we are in danger of becoming as the last party, 
spending a lifetime in the pursuit of vanity, forget- 
ting the future, and perishing even of the poison 
concealed in the sweets which attracted us. 

Who hath sorrow? Who hath woe? 

He who leaves much wealth to his heirs, and takes 
with him to the grave a burden of sins. He who 
gathers wealth without justice. “He that gathereth 
riches and not by right in the midst of his days shall 
he leave them.” To the portals of eternity his gold 
and his silver cannot accompany the soul of man; 
good deeds and trust in God must be his directing 
spirits. 

Although God is merciful and pardons the sins 
of man against Himself, he who has wronged his 


268 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 
neighbour must gain that neighbour’s forgiveness be- 
fore he can claim the mercy of the Lord. “This must 
ye do,” said Rabbi Eleazer, “that ye may be clean 
from all your sins before the Lord. The Day of 
Atonement may gain pardon for the sins of man 
against his Maker, but not for those against his 
fellow-man, till every wrong done is satisfied.” 

If a man is called upon to pardon his fellow, freely 
he must do it, else how can he dare, on the Day of 
Atonement, to ask pardon for his sins against the 
Eternal? It is customary on this day for a man to 
thoroughly cleanse himself, bodily and spiritually, 
and to array himself in white fresh clothing, to typify 
the words of Isaiah, “Though your sins should be as 
scarlet, they shall become white as snow.” 

It happened that the mayor of a city once sent 
his servant to the market to purchase some fish. 
When he reached the place of sale he found that all 
the fish save one had been sold, and this one a Jew- 
ish tailor was about purchasing. Said the mayor’s 
servant, “I will give one gold piece for it’; said the 
tailor, “I will give two.” The mayor’s messenger 
then expressed his willingness to pay three gold 
pieces for it, but the tailor claimed the fish, and 
said he would not lose it though he should be obliged 
to pay ten gold pieces for it. The mayor’s servant 
then returned home, and in anger related the circum- 
stance to his master. The mayor sent for his subject, 
and when the latter appeared before him, asked: 

“What is thy occupation?” 

“A tailor, sir,” replied the man. 

“Then how canst thou afford to pay so great a. 
price for a fish, and how dare degrade my dignity 
by offering for it a larger sum than that offered by 
my servant?” 


HEBREW FEASTS AND FESTIVALS 269 

“T fast to-morrow,” replied the tailor, “and I 
wished the fish to eat to-day, that I might have 
strength to do so. I would not have lost it even for 
ten pieces of gold.” 

“What is to-morrow more than any other day?” 
asked the mayor. 

“Why art thou more than any other man?” re- 
turned the other. 

“Because the king hath appointed me to this 
office.” 

“Well,” replied the tailor, “the King of kings hath 
appointed this day to be holier than all other days, 
for on this day we hope that God will pardon our 
transgressions.” 

“If this be the case thou wert right,” answered the 
mayor, and the Israelite departed in peace. 

Thus if a person’s intention is to obey God, nothing 
can hinder its accomplishment. On this day God 
commanded His children to fast, but they must 
strengthen their bodies to obey Him by eating on the 
day before. It is a person’s duty to sanctify himself, 
bodily and spiritually, for the approach of this great 
day. He should be ready to enter at any moment into 
the Fearful Presence with repentance and good deeds 
as his companions. 

A certain man had three friends. One of these he 
loved dearly; the second he loved also, but not as 
intensely as the first; but toward the third one he 
was quite indifferently disposed. 

Now the king of the country sent an officer to this 
man, commanding his immediate appearance before 
the throne. Greatly terrified was the man at this 
summons. He thought that somebody had been 
speaking evil of him, or probably accusing him 
falsely before his sovereign, and being afraid to ap- 


270 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


pear unaccompanied before the royal presence, he 
resolved to ask one of his friends to go with him. 
First he naturally applied to his dearest friend, but 
he at once declined to go, giving no reason and no 
excuse for his lack of friendliness. So the man ap- 
plied to his second friend, who said to him: 

“T will go with thee as far as the palace gates, 
but I will not enter with thee before the king.” 

In desperation the man applied to his third friend, 
the one whom he had neglected, but who replied to 
him at once: 

“Fear not; I will go with thee, and I will speak in 
thy defense. I will not leave thee until thou art de- 
livered from thy trouble.” 

The “first friend” is a man’s wealth, which he must 
leave behind him when he dies. The “second friend” 
is typified by the relatives who follow him to the 
grave and leave him when the earth has covered his 
remains. The “third friend,” he who entered with 
him into the presence of the king, is as the good 
deeds of a man’s life, which never desert, but ac- 
company him to plead his cause before the King of 
kings, who regardeth not person nor taketh bribery. 

Thus taught Rabbi Eleazer: 

“On this great and tearful day the angel Samal 
finds no blots, no sins on Israel.” Thus he addresses 
the Most High: | 

“*O Sovereign Lord, upon the earth this day one 
nation pure and innocent exists. Even as the angels 
is Israel on this Atonement Day. As peace exists in 
heaven, so rests it now upon this people, praying to 
Thy Holy Name.’ | 

“God hears this testimony of His angel, and par- 
dons all His people’s sins.” 

But though the Almighty thus forgives our sins, 


HEBREW FEASTS AND FESTIVALS 271 


we may not repeat them with impunity, for “to such 
a one as saith ‘I will commit a sin and repent,’ there 
can be no forgiveness, no repentance.” 


FEAST OF TABERNACLES 


The Feast of Tabernacles begins on the fifteenth 
day of the seventh month, Tishri (October), and 
during its continuance, seven days, the Israelites are 
commanded to dwell in tabernacles or booths. This 
is designed to keep fresh in their memory the tents 
which formed their homes during their forty years’ 
sojourn in the wilderness. The symbols of the 
festival are branches of the palm, bound with sprigs 
of myrtle and willow, and a citron. 

The Lord said, “This is not to be to you a fast as 
the Day of Atonement; eat, drink, be merry, and 
sacrifice peace-offerings thereon.” The Bible says, 
“Seven days unto the Lord”; therefore we should in 
all our merriment devote a few serious thoughts to 
Him. 

The Feast of Tabernacles is held in the autumn, 
after the fruits of the field have been garnered in 
the storehouses, according to the words of the Bible, 
“The Feast of Tabernacles shalt thou hold for thy- 
self seven days when thou hast gathered in the pro- 
duce of thy threshing-floor and thy wine-press.” 

This dwelling in booths is also to bring to mind 
the manner in which the Israelites lived for forty 
years after they left Egypt, with merely temporary 
walls to protect them from summer’s heat and win- 
ter’s cold, from wind and storm. God was with them 
through all their generations, and they were pro- 
tected from all evil. 

According to the opinion of some of the Rabbis, 


272 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


the Israelites did not really dwell in booths in the 
wilderness, but were surrounded by clouds—by seven 
clouds. Four clouds, one at each of the four sides; 
a fifth, a shadow, to protect them from the hot rays 
of the sun; the sixth, a pillar of fire to give them 
light by night (they being able to see as clearly by 
night as by day); and the seventh, to precede their 
journeying and direct their way. 

The children of Israel departed from Egypt in 
Nissan (April), and obtained immediately these 
booths, which they made use of for forty years. Thus 
they were in booths during the entire cycle of the 
year, and we could as easily commemorate this fact 
in the spring as in the fall, in the summer as in the 
winter. Why, then, has God made autumn, and 
neither spring nor summer, the season of ob- 
servance? Because if we dwelt in booths in the sum- 
mer, it would be a question whether we did so in 
obedience to God’s behest or for our own gratifica- 
tion; for many people seek airy retreats during this 
season; but in the fall, when the trees lose their 
leaves, and the air grows cold and chilling, and it is 
the time to fix our houses for the winter, then by 
inhabiting these temporary residences, we display 
our desire to do as our Creator has bidden us. 

The Feast of Tabernacles is also the Feast of In- 
gathering, when we should thank God for the kind- 
ness shown us, and the treasure with which He has 
blessed us. When the Eternal has provided man 
with his sustenance, in the long evenings which 
follow he should meditate and study his Bible, and 
make this indeed a “feast to the Lord,” and not 
entirely for personal gratification. 

The four species belonging to the vegetable king- 
dom which we use in this festival are designed to 


HEBREW FEASTS AND FESTIVALS 273 


remind us of the four elements of nature, which 
work under the direction and approval of the Most 
High, and without which all things would cease to 
exist. Therefore the Bible commands us on this 
“feast of the Lord” to give thanks, and bring before 
Him these four species, each typifying one of the 
elements. 

“Ye shall take for yourselves the fruit of the tree 
hadar” (the citron). Its color is high yellow and 
resembles fire. The second species is the palm 
branch (Heb. Lulab). The palm is a high tree, grow- 
ing up straight in the air, and its fruit is sweet and 
delicious to the taste; this then represents the second 
element, air. The third is the bough of the myrtle, 
one of the lowliest of trees, growing close to the 
ground; its nature, cold and dry as earth, fits it to 
represent that element. The fourth is “the willow of 
the brook,” which grows in perfection close beside 
the water, dropping its branches into the stream, and 
symbolizing thus the last element, water. 

The Bible teaches us that for each of these four 
elements we owe special thanks to God. 

The citron we hold in the left hand, and the other 
three we grasp together in the right. This we do be- 
cause the citron contains in itself all that the others 
represent. The outside skin is yellow, fire; the in- 
side skin is white and damp, air; the pulp is watery, 
water; and the seeds are dry, earth. It is taken into 
the left hand, because the right hand is strongest, 
and the citron is but one, while the other emblems 
are three. 

These four emblems represent likewise the four 
principal members of the human body. The citron 
is shaped somewhat like a heart, without which we 
could not live, and with which man should serve his 


274 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


fellows; the palm branch represents the spine, which 
is the foundation of the human frame, in front of 
which the heart lies; this signifies that we should 
serve God with our entire body. The branches of the 
myrtle resemble a human eye, with which man recog- 
nizes the deeds of his fellows, and with which he may 
obtain a knowledge of the law. The leaves of the 
willow represent the lips, with which man may serve 
the Eternal and thank Him. The myrtle is men- 
tioned in the Bible before the willow, because we are 
able to see and know a thing before we can tell its 
name with our lips; man is able to look into the Bible 
before he can study the same. Therefore, with these 
four principal parts of the human frame should 
we praise the Creator, as David said, “All my bones 
shall say, O Lord, who is like unto Thee?” 

Maimonides, in his work called Moreh Nebuchim 
(“The Guide of the Perplexed”), explains that God 
commanded the Israelites to take these four emblems 
during this festival to remind them that they were 
brought out from the wilderness, where no fruit 
grew, and no people lived, into a land of brooklets, 
waters, a land flowing with milk and honey. For 
this reason did God command us to hold in our 
hands the precious fruit of this land while singing 
praises to Him, the One who wrought miracles in our 
behalf, who feeds and supports us from the pro- 
ductiveness of the earth. 

The four emblems are different in taste, appear- 
ance, and odor, even as the sons of men are different 
in conduct and habits. 

The citron is a valuable fruit; it is good for food 
and has a most pleasant odor. It is compared to the 
intelligent man, who is righteous in his conduct 
toward God and his fellow-man. The odor of the 


HEBREW FEASTS AND FESTIVALS 275 


fruit is his good deeds; its substance is his learning, 
on which others may feed. This is perfect among 
the emblems, and is, therefore, always mentioned 
first, and taken by itself in one hand. 

The palm branch brings forth fruit, but is with- 
out odor. It is compared to those people who are 
learned, but who are wanting in good deeds; they 
who know the law, but transgress its mandates. 

The myrtle is compared to those people who are 
naturally good, who act correctly toward God and 
man, but who are uneducated. 

The willow of the brook has neither fruit nor 
odor; it is, therefore, compared to the people who 
have no knowledge and who perform no good deeds. 

The Rabbis have said that he who has failed to 
participate in the keeping of the Tabernacle Festival 
in Jerusalem has failed to taste real enjoyment in 
his life. The first day of the feast was kept with 
great solemnity, and the middle days with joy and 
gladness in various methods of public amusement. 

The Temple in Jerusalem was provided with a 
gallery for the women, which was called the apart- 
ment of the women, and the men sat below, as is 
still the custom of the synagogue. Thither all re- 
paired. The young priests filled the lamps of the 
large chandeliers with oil, and lighted them all, even 
that the place was so bright that its reflection lighted 
the streets of the city. Hymns and praises were 
chanted by the pious ones, and the Levites praised 
the Lord with harps, cornets, trumpets, flutes, and 
other instruments of harmony. They stood upon 
fifteen broad steps, reaching from the lower floor to 
the gallery, the court of the women. And they sang 
fifteen psalms as they ascended, beginning with “A 
Song of Degrees,” and the large choir joined voices 


276 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


with them. The ancient Hillel was accustomed to. 
address the assemblages on these occasions. 

“If God’s presence dwells here,” he was used to 
say, “then are ye here, each one of you, the souls 
of each; but if God should be removed from your 
midst through disobedience, then which of you could 
be here?” For the Lord has said, “If thou wilt come 
to My house, then will I come to thy house, but if thou 
refusest to visit My dwelling, I will also neglect to 
enter yours”; as it is written, “In every place where 
I shall permit My name to be mentioned I will come 
unto thee and I will bless thee.” 

Then some of the people answered: 

“Happy were the days of our youth, for they have 
not set to blush the days of our old age.” These were 
men of piety. 

Others answered: 

“Happy is our old age, for therein have we atoned 
for the sins of our youth.” These were repentants. 

Then joining together, both parties said: 

“Happy is the one who is free from sin; but ye 
who have sinned, repent, return to God, and ye will 
be forgiven.” 

The festival was continued during the entire night; 
for when the religious exercises concluded the people 
gave themselves up to innocent but thorough enjoy- 
ment. 

This festival was also called the “Festival of Draw- 
ing Water.” | 

Because, during the existence of the Temple, wine 
was offered during the year for a burnt-offering, but 
on the Feast of Tabernacles they offered two drink- 
offerings, one of wine and one of water. Of the other 
they made a special festival on the second day of the 
Tabernacle assemblage, calling it the Feast of Draw- 


HEBREW FEASTS AND FESTIVALS 277 
ing the Water. It was founded upon the words of the 
prophet: 

“And ye shall draw water with joy from the foun- 
tains of salvation.” 


HANNUKAH 


This festival is observed for eight days during the 
ninth month, Kislev (December), and commemorates 
the dedication of the Temple after it had been defiled 
by Antiochus Epiphanes, whose armies were over- 
thrown by the valiant Maccabees, Hashmoneans. 

The Most Holy One has frequently wrought won- 
ders in behalf of His children in their hour of need, 
and thereby displayed His supreme power to the 
nations of the world. These should prevent man 
from growing infidel and ascribing all happiness to 
the course of nature. The God Who created the world 
from naught may change at His will the nature 
which He established. When the Hashmoneans 
gained, with the aid of God, their great victory, and 
restored peace and harmony to their land, their first 
act was to cleanse and dedicate the Temple, which 
had been defiled, and on the twenty-fifth day of 
Kislev, in obedience to the teachings of the Rabbis, 
we inaugurate the “Dedication Feast” by lighting the 
lamps or candles prepared expressly for this oc- 
casion. The first night we light one, and then an 
additional one each succeeding night of its continu- 
ance. We also celebrate it by hymns of thanksgiving 
and hallelujahs. 

This feast is foreshadowed in the Book of Num- 
bers. When Aaron observed the offerings of the 
princes of each of the tribes and their great liberality, 
he was conscious of a feeling of regret, because he 
and his tribe were unable to join with them. But 


278 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 


these words were spoken to comfort him, “Aaron, 
thy merit is greater than theirs, for thou lightest and 
fixest the holy lamps.” 

When were these words spoken? 

When he was charged with the blessing to be found 
in Numbers 6. 23, as will be found in the Book of 
Maccabees in the Apocrypha. 

The Lord said unto Moses, “Thus say unto Aaron: 
In the generations to come, there will be another 
dedication and lighting of the lamps, and through 
thy descendants shall the service be performed. 
Miracles and wonders will accompany this dedica- 
tion. Fear not for the greatness of the princes of 
thy tribe; during the existence of the Temple thou 
shalt sacrifice, but the lighting of the lamps shall be 
forever, and the blessing with which I have charged 
thee to bless the people shall also exist forever. 
Through the destruction of the Temple the sacrifices 
will be abolished, but the lighting of the dedication 
of the Hashmoneans will never cease.” 

The Rabbis have ordained this celebration by 
lighting of lamps, to make God’s miracle known to 
all coming generations, and it is our duty to light the 
same in the synagogues and in our homes. 

Although the Lord afflicted Israel on account of 
iniquities, He still showed mercy, and allowed not 
a complete destruction, and to this festival do the 
Rabbis again apply the verse in Leviticus 26. 44: 

“And yet for all that, though they be in the land 
of their enemies, will I not cast them away, neither 
will I loath them to destroy them utterly, to break 
my covenant with them, for I am the Lord their 
God.” 

And thus do the Rabbis explain the same: 

“Will I not cast them away.” In the time of the 


HEBREW FEASTS AND FESTIVALS 279 
Chaldeans I appointed Daniel and his companions 
to deliver them. 

“Neither will I loath them.” In the time of the 
Assyrians I gave them Matthias, his sons and their 
comrades, to serve them. 

“To destroy them.” In the time of Haman I sent 
Mordecai and Esther to rescue them. 

“To break My covenant with them.” In the time 
of the Romans I appointed Rabbi Judah and his as- 
sociates to work their salvation. 

“For I am the Eternal, your God.” In the future 
no nation shall rule over Israel, and the descendants 
of Abraham shall be restored to their independent 
state. 

The dedication commemorated by Hannukah oc- 
curred in the year 3622-165 B.c.E. 


! 


PurRIM 


This festival, occurring on the fourteenth day of 
the twelfth month, Adar (March), is to commemorate 
the deliverance of the Hebrews from the wiles of 
Haman, through the God-aided means of Mordecai 
and Esther. 

Although the Holy One threatens the Israelites, in 
order that they may repent of their sins, He has also 
tempted them, in order to increase their reward. 

For instance, a father who loves his son, and de- 
sires him to improve his conduct, must punish him 
for his misdeeds; but it is a punishment induced by 
affection which he bestows. 

A certain apostate once said to Rabbi Saphra: 

“It is written, ‘Because I know you more than all 
the nations of the earth, therefore I visit upon you 
your iniquities’; how is this? If a person has a wild 


280 THE WISDOM OF THE HEBREWS 
horse, is it likely that he would put his dearest friend 
upon it, that he might be thrown and hurt?” 

Rabbi Saphra answered: 

“Suppose a man lends money to two persons: one 
of these is his friend, the other his enemy. He will 
allow his friend to repay him in installments, that. 
the discharge of the debt may not prove onerous; 
but from his enemy he will require the amount in 
full. The verse you quote will apply in the same 
manner, ‘I love you, therefore will I visit upon you 
your iniquities’; meaning, ‘I will punish you for them 
as they occur, little by little, by which means you 
may have quittance and happiness in the world to 
come. ” 

The action of the king in delivering his signet ring 
to Haman had more effect upon the Jews than the 
precepts and warnings of forty-eight prophets who 
lectured to them early and late. They clothed them- 
selves in sackcloth, and repented truly with tears 
and fasting, and God had compassion upon them and 
destroyed Haman. 

Although the reading of the Book of Esther 
(Megilah) on Purim is not a precept of the Penta- 
teuch, ’tis nevertheless binding upon us and our 
descendants. Therefore the day is appointed as 
one of feasting and gladness, and interchange of 
presents, and also of gifts to the poor, that they too 
may rejoice. As in the decree of Haman, no dis- 
tinction was made between rich and poor, as all alike 
were doomed to destruction, it is proper that all 
should have equal cause to feel joyful, and therefore 
in all generations the poor should be liberally re- 
membered on this day. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY AND SOURCES 


Tue JewisH ENcycLopepiA. 12 vols. Funk & Wagnalls, 
New York. 

THE ORIGIN AND GROWTH OF THE HEBREW RELIGION. By 
H. F. Fowler, University of Chicago. 

THE RELIGION OF IsRAEL. By Professor G. A. Barton, Mac- 
millan Company. 

THE BABYLONIAN TALMup. 10 vols. Translated by Michael 
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THE RELIGION OF THE WorLD. By Professor G. A. Barton, 
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A History oF JEwisH PuHILosopHy. By Jsaac Husik, Mac- 
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JEWISH PuHiLosopHy. By Boris D. Bogen, Macmillan Com- 
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GREAT MEN IN IsrAEL. By 7. Max Weis, The Bloch Publish- 
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THE WIspom oF IsrRaAEL. By Edwin Collins, E. P. Dutton’ 
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JUDAISM, CHRISTIANITY AND MOHAMMEDANISM. By Professor 
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THE MopERN READER’S BisLtE. By Professor Richard Moul- 
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THE ESSENCE OF THE TALMUD. The Haldeman-Julius Com- 
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THE Farrar FENTON Bree. Oxford Press, 35 W. 32d Street, 
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STUDIES IN BrpLicaAL MystTIcISM AND SYMBOLISM. By Maurice 
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